


And Action...

by Pixelatrix



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Character Death, Drama, Explicit Sexual Content, Family, Humor, M/M, Panty Kink, Romance, dunno if it really counts as a kink though, relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-08
Updated: 2016-05-18
Packaged: 2018-03-21 23:10:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 32,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3707063
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pixelatrix/pseuds/Pixelatrix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Indiana Hackett is the son of Admiral Steven Hackett and his now deceased wife, Jasmine Hackett.  He's grown up at his father's side, spending his life on Alliance ships & bases.  With no interest in ever becoming a marine, Indy follows his heart and becomes a vid-maker.  He never expects to find himself in the middle of a war between Cerberus and the Alliance.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

The day Admiral Steven Hackett gained his most precious son, Indiana, also became the day which he lost his beloved ex-wife for good. Jasmine had left him two months into her pregnancy, claiming to be tired of competing with his career in the alliance. He thought he had time to win her back.

And then she died in childbirth.

Holding the tiny infant who already had an impressive amount of silky soft hair on his head, Hackett paced the nursery ward of the hospital while the doctors told him of Jasmine’s condition. Her parents stood in the room as well though he caught the looks of blame sent his way. They’d never approved of him or his career.

When Jasmine’s mother suggested that the Admiral might have the ‘time to be a father, since he never had the time to be a husband,’ Hackett lost the normally tight rein of control he kept over his temper.   He’d had them escorted out of the hospital and put on the first transport home. It would be wise for all of them to grieve in private.

Standing over the memorial stone for Jasmine, Hackett made an oath to himself to be the best father possible. Indiana would want for nothing. He refused to be the absentee father everyone seemed convinced was inevitable. Other Alliance officers brought their children with them on their ships why should he be any different?

Lifting his year old son into his arms, Hackett walked through the living room into the bedroom with Indy in one arm and a book in his other hand.   He read to the drowsy boy from manual which he’d put together for an upcoming course at the Villa. His transfer papers for Rio had come through a few weeks prior.

It was complicated handling an infant on active duty. Hackett had decided to take a teaching post in the N1 course at the Villa for at least the next two years. It would let him continue to move his career forward while allowing him to spend time with the precocious baby in his arms.

“Strategy and weaponry not to your liking?” Hackett muttered when his son tried to pinch his lips closed.   He chuckled when Indy became distracted by his beard. “No attention span at all. How about we read Winnie the Pooh instead?”

“Poo!”

“Yes, Pooh.” Hackett set the datapad aside and reached for a worn copy of Winnie of the Pooh that had been a gift from Indy’s grandfather. His grandmother still refused to acknowledge him. “Sure you don’t want to have a nap instead?”

“Poo!”

“How do you manage to be so focused and yet so easily distracted?” Hackett had refused to ‘baby-talk’ his son. He barked out a laugh when Indy tried to frown at him when he didn’t start reading immediately. “Patience, son, patience.”

“Poo?” Indy’s lower lip started to tremble.

“Yes, yes, Pooh it is.” Hackett tried to remain stern in the face of the suddenly mournful blue eyes peering up at him from underneath a wild mop of dark brown hair. He eased into the plush leather chair with Indy snuggled against his chest while he read to him. “I love you.”

“Da?”

“Yes?”

“Poo!”

“Yes, sir.” Hackett shook his head with a laugh and flipped to the first page. He knew the story by heart, but Indy liked the pictures. “You are _not_ good for my hardass reputation.”

“Poo.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Indy's Face reference:  
>  http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/115135040426/indiana-indy-hackett
> 
> Andrew Face Reference:  
>  http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/115901452816/dailydoseofdilf-tom-may-dilf


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“Go, go.”

Hackett watched bemused while his son urged his ‘horsey’ on faster. Major Andrew Merrick took great delight in being what most of the young officers under him would call an unmitigated bastard. He was tough, harsh and had no sense of humour, in their eyes. He also seemed to take great delight in lugging young Indy around on his shoulders.

“Indiana.” Hackett struggled to keep his laughter squashed down. “Are you being a nuisance?”

“I not a…” Indy scrunched up his little nose while staring at his father in confusion. “I…not. Horsey!”

“He’s fine, Steven.” Andrew gave Hackett one of his rare smiles. “He’s a good lad, good for morale. Keeps the N1 idiots upbeat when I beat them down.”

“Come here my little charmer.” Hackett caught Indy by the waist and swung the toddler up onto his own shoulders. “You are dangerous.”

“Ride horsey, daddy.”

“Major Merrick isn’t a horsey. We don’t ride him.” Hackett sternly ignored the devious smirk Andrew suddenly sent his direction.

“Not my horsey?” Indy’s lower lip did the trembling thing which tended to melt the hearts of anyone within visual range. “’Dew no like me?”

“No, Indy, ‘dew likes you very much.” Andrew promised him with a serious tone to his voice. “I think though it’s time for dinner so I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Dew come.” Indy scrunched his face up in what Hackett knew was supposed to be an imitation of his own stern glare. “Daddy? Pwease?”

“Andrew, would you care to join us for dinner?” Hackett reached an arm up to get a firmer grip on his wiggling and giggling toddler. “Yes, yes, my little charming monkey, your horsey is coming to dinner.”

“Horsey Dew!”

The trio made their way across the Villa toward the three storey building which housed the officer’s quarters. Hackett and his son had an apartment on the third floor. It was larger than most. He’d wanted Indy to have room to grow and to play.

His initial worries about Indy being restricted too much faded quickly. His precocious son quickly charmed his way into the hearts of everyone at the N1 training facility. They all knew his name, his favourite book and his favourite treats—miniature donuts.

They indulged his son way too much, not that Hackett was any better. Indy had wanted for nothing. He did keep a close eye on ensure his son didn’t turn into a spoiled brat. The toddler seemed by nature to be precocious, sweet and not overly prone to tantrums.

The _terrible twos_ hadn’t been too awful thus far.

Hackett had more trouble keeping the marines focused on their N1 training and _not_ on playing with his son. Indy was the unofficial Alliance mascot, at least as far as the marines at the Villa were concerned. They all kept a close eye on him to make sure he didn’t tumble into trouble.

The only unfortunate part was the closeness which Indy had developed with Andrew. Major Merrick was an old friend. Hackett had been involved with the man briefly before his marriage to Jasmine. They had parted on good terms, but he’d always missed the man.

“Steven?”

“Hmm?” Hackett paused while washing the dishes from their meal to find Andrew watching him intently. “I believe…”

“Read story. Now. Pwease?” Indy trudged sleepily toward his father with a familiar book clutched underneath one arm and his bear dangling from his other hand. “Pwease, Daddy?”

“Why don’t we let Andrew…”

“No.” Indy shook his head while lifting his arms to demand to be picked up. “No, Dew. Daddy read.”

“Why don’t I finish cleaning up since you cooked and you can read Winnie the Pooh.” Andrew skilfully maneuvered Hackett and his son out of their own kitchen toward the living room. “I’m good with my hands.”

“I am aware.” Hackett had a feeling if he didn’t attempt to put a little separation between them that Andrew would become a fixture. He wasn’t certain how he felt about the idea. He’d been alone since Jasmine left him. “You can leave those.”

“Oh no, not a chance.”

“Daddy?” Indy tugged on his beard until he had his father’s complete attention. “Read Pooh.”

“Yes, yes, little monkey, we’ll start the story now.” Hackett chuckled when his son flipped the pages of the book to his favourite part of the story. “Or we’ll read this page first.”

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“Dew!”

“Major?”

Andrew Merrick lifted his head to glare intimidatingly at the Lieutenant who was interrupting him mid-thought. “Yes?”

“The Junior Admiral is looking for you, Sir.” The young woman gestured behind him to the four year old making his way around the obstacle course.

Indy clambered over a couple of sandbags to finally make it to where Andrew stood. “I’m bored.”

“Does the Admiral know where you are, monkey?” Andrew asked while Indy climbed up his body until he was clinging to his shoulders. “Comfy up there?”

“Yep.” Indy clung to him with one arm while fidgeting around until he pulled a small vid-camera out of his pocket. It had been a gift from the instructors at the Villa. “Wanna make a vid.”

“Now?”

“Yep.”

“We’re busy, monkey.”

“Please?” Indy pleaded while wrapping his arms around Andrew’s neck. His lower lip trembled slightly while his bright blue eyes widened. “Please, Dew?”

“Your father will kill me.” Andrew had no doubt Hackett would catch up with his son eventually—he always did. He shifted Indy slightly then returned his attention to the N1 recruits in front of him. “All right, you lazy sods, get your arses in gear. The monkey needs something to film. Your incompetence should be amusing enough.”

“You said a bad word.” Indy leaned forward with the camera focused on the marines making their way across an intricate set of rope bridges which were strung over a muddy pond. He giggled when one of them fell into the water. “She said a bad word too.”

“Yeah, yeah, monkey, just don’t tell your father.”

He thought about sending a message to Hackett. He really did. The idea of those steely blue eyes flashing in anger at him was too hard to resist. He’d always enjoyed holding tigers by the tail.

If Andrew was honest with himself, he actually expected the Admiral to come storming into the obstacle course any moment, yelling would be involved. Indy seemed oblivious, content to film the recruits. The little monkey tended to charm his way out of trouble most of the time.

“Major Merrick.”

Andrew twisted around so both he and Indy were facing the ire of Hackett. “Admiral.”

“Daddy.” Indy waved his camera around, bonking Andrew on the side of the head in the process. He patted the sore spot with his hand by way of apology before grinning at his father. “I made a vid. It’s awesome. Wanna see?”

Hackett gave Andrew a resigned look then took his son. “I’m sure it’s ‘awesome.’ We can watch it _after_ you nap.”

“No nap.” Indy pouted as he rested his head on his father’s chest. “I wanna story.”

“His lip is trembling.” Andrew reached out to ruffle the four year olds dark brown hair. “Never a good sign.”

“How about I read you two chapters out of your new story book while you settle in for your nap?” Hackett glared at Andrew over his son’s head.

“Four.” Indy lifted up his arm to show four tiny fingers.

“Three.” Hackett ignored the chuckling from Andrew.

“Four.”

“Four and no complaints when you get your haircut later.” Hackett laughed when Indy immediately lowered one of his fingers. “Three then?”

“Three.”

 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

High-pitched giggling wasn’t the _norm_ for an Alliance vessel, but Indy had a way of making everyone around him fall instantly in love with him. At six, he had a disturbingly sharp understanding of the impact his blue eyes and charming smile had on people. Hackett thanked the gods that his son had never been prone to truly getting into trouble.

“He needs to make friends with other children.” Doctor Karin Chakwas was the newly assigned medic to the cruiser Hackett currently had command over. She nudged him with her elbow. “Are you even listening to me?”

Hackett turned from where he’d been watching his son filming several of the crew in the mess. “You think Indy needs friend. I heard you.”

“Friends his own age.” Chakwas carried on with her suggestion that he send his son to the Academy on Arcturus. “They have dormitories where he could live while you’re on tour.”

“No.”

“Steven.”

“My son stays with me.” Hackett refused to play the role of an absentee father.  He gestured toward his son who was giggling madly at the antics of the requisition officer. “Does Indy seem unhappy, anti-social or lonely? He has a ton of friends all throughout the Alliance. He loves looking at the world through his vid-camera. I will _not_ force my son to attempt to fit into some sort of expectation that your medical books think he should. He’s happy. As long as he stays that way, I see no issues with the way I’m raising him.”

“Daddy.” Indy tugged on his sleeve until he was hefted up into his father’s arms. He reached up to touch his fingers to Hackett’s brow which was wrinkled by his scowl. “Was wrong?”

“A minor disagreement.” Hackett kept an arm around Indy to hold him while capturing his wrist to pull the poking finger away from his forehead. “Nothing to worry about.”

Indy turned clear blue eyes toward Chakwas with a scowl almost identical to his father’s on his face. “You don’t be mean to my daddy.”

“ _Indiana.”_ Hackett found it hard to scold his son when he was trying not to laugh.

“Mean lady.” Indy continued to glare at the doctor while Hackett tried and failed not to roar with laughter. His son wrapped his arms around his neck. “I made a new vid.”

“I saw.”

“Wanna watch it with me?” Indy turned pointedly from Chakwas to focus on Hackett. “With lunch? I’m hungry.”

“All right, monkey, I get it.” He chuckled while walking toward the mess to grab a meal for both of them.

“Daddy?”

“No, you can’t have cake for lunch.”

“I miss Dew.” Indy knew how to say Andrew, but still insisted on calling him by the nickname he’d given the man as a toddler. “Why can’t Dew be on the ship? He’s nicer than the mean old doctor.”

“Indiana Hackett.”

“She was picking on you.”

“Yes, Indy, but I can handle it.” Hackett set his son down at one of the nearby tables.

He watched as Indy leaned over to nudge the Lieutenant-Commander sitting beside him. His son whispered loud enough for the entire room to hear that ‘his daddy was the bestest Admiral in the entire fleet and he wasn’t scared of mean doctors.’ Chakwas shook her head and joined in with several members of the crew who were laughing.

“Indy.”

“But daddy, you said to always tell the truth.” Indy seemed oblivious to the uproarious laughter in the mess. He was focused solely on his father. “It’s the truth.”

“All right, monkey.”

* * *

 

_From: Steven Hackett_

_To: Andrew Merrick_

_Subj: re: Indy’s Birthday._

_We are planning on a taking shore-leave on Elysium in a few days, right around his birthday. Would you want to meet us there?_

_The monkey has been asking about you._

_And asking about you._

_And asking about you._

_So, send him a vid or something._

_And yes, you are invited to stay over at the apartment I’m renting for the weekend, in my room. Don’t smirk your terminal, I can’t see it so it’s wasted._

_Steven_

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“Is it now?” Indy bounced on his heels next to Hackett while tugging relentlessly on his father’s sleeve. “Now? Daddy? Is it now?”

“You’ve asked me seven times in the last ten minutes. My answer has yet to change.” Hackett rested a hopefully calming hand on his son’s head, tousling the dark brown locks to still his excited wiggling. “Patience, Indy.”

“But Daddy…”

“Your ‘Dew’ won’t get here any faster if you hop on one foot until both your legs fall off.” He wouldn’t admit to feeling any of the same exciting toward seeing Major Merrick again. It wouldn’t do to give Andrew the satisfaction at knowing he’d been missed by _both_ Hacketts. “Why don’t we have breakfast?”

“I want Dew. Why can’t he live this us?” Indy grabbed his father’s hand to start trying to lead him toward the nearby café. “The ship is super big. He can share with me.”

While the image of Andrew attempting to squash himself into Indy’s little bunk was _hilarious,_ Hackett thought he’d prefer to keep the man in _his_ bunk. Not that his son needed to know that. The little monkey already spent way too much time attempting to get them to create a little family.

He _wanted_ his Dew.

No amount of explaining how the Alliance worked or that Dew wasn’t _actually_ related to them would change his mind. Stubbornness, it seemed, was hereditary. Hackett found himself thankful for Indy’s innate sweet charm. His son would likely be a completely spoiled brat otherwise.

“Daddy?” Indy pointed to a berry tart in the bakery display case. “I want that one.”

“For breakfast?”

“’s my birthday.” Indy gave him a pleading look which Hackett chucked at much to his son’s displeasure. “ _Daddy.”_

“Just this once.” Hackett caved to the pitifully sad blue eyes peering up at him. He placed his hand over his son’s face to gently push him back. “Enough with the fake pouting.”

Indy waited until they were seated and eating to shock his father once again. “Is Dew gonna sneak into your room again?”

“ _Indiana._ ” Hackett coughed violently as he inhaled part of his breakfast sandwich. “What on earth?”

“But he did it last time.” Indy scrunched his nose up looking at his father in bewilderment. “Does he get nightmares? I always sleep with you when I have bad dreams.”

“I…”

“Yeah, Steven, can I sleep with you when I have a bad dream?” Andrew chucked when Indy threw himself out of his chair at his ‘Dew’. He didn’t seem to mind the sticky fingers clinging to his uniform. “Hello, monkey.”

“Dew!” Indy let himself be swung around until he was perched on Andrew’s broad shoulders.

“Happy Birthday, monkey.”

“Where’s my present?”

“Am I not enough?” Andrew carefully set the boy down onto his chair.

“Nope.” Indy answered round another bite of his tart.

“What have I said about not talking with food in your mouth?” Hackett leaned across the table to brush crumbs from his son’s shirt, much to the boy’s embarrassment.

“Sorry.”

“Hmm.”

“Didn’t you get me a present?” Indy tugged on Andrew’s sleeve after he’d finished with his breakfast. “It’s my birthday.”

Andrew towered over the seven year old then draped himself over him. “You’ll have to carry me.”

“Stop squashing me.” Indy shoved ineffectually at the massive marine’s bulk. “Save me, Daddy.”

“What am I supposed to do?” Hackett found the whole thing highly entertaining.

“Dew.” Indy dug his little fingers into the man’s side trying to find a ticklish spot amongst the hard muscle. “ _Dew!”_

 _“_ Yes, monkey?”

“You are _not_ a present.”

“Not what your father says.”

“Andrew Merrick.” Hackett shot to his feet with a sharp glare at the man. “I’ll ship your ass to the farthest colony I can find.”

“Oooh, Daddy said a bad word.” Indy grinned out from under the bulk of Andrew. “You gotta give me ten credits ‘cause that’s naughty.”

“You wouldn’t want to be _naughty_ , would you Steven?” Andrew dodged the arm Hackett threw out to smack him then headed up to order himself breakfast.

“Are you naughty, Daddy?”

Hackett pinched the bridge of his nose reciting the Alliance code in his head a few times. He smiled reassuringly at Indy who was starting to fidget in his chair. “Andrew is teasing me.”

“How come?”

“He enjoys it.”

“Why?”

“I have no idea.” Hackett briefly considered buying a second tart for Indy to stem the tidal wave of questions. His son always seemed to have a massive amount of questions for him these days. “Why don’t you ask Dew?”

“Daddy?”

“Yes?”

“How come you pinched Dew’s butt?” Indy frowned at him seriously.

“You’ll understand when you’re older.” Hackett sincerely hoped older meant when his son was in his forties at the least.

“But why?”

“It’s a grown-up thing.”

“Uncle David doesn’t pinch your butt.”

“Indiana Hackett.” He reached out to cover Indy’s mouth. “Would you like to open your presents?”

Indy nodded.

“Then stop asking about people’s butts.” Hackett ignored the narrowed eyes his son gave him and the snickering from Andrew as he took his seat at the table. “And you can shut the hell up as well.”

“ _Daddy.”_

Hackett took solace in his cup of coffee. “Eat your tart.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

With his body on the ground, Indy inched his way through the air ducts of the ship. He’d snuck into them after the engineer left them open. He had a short amount of time to get into position for his latest vid.

This one was called—the Admiral in action.

His father had refused to be the subject of any of his movies for so long that Indy had decided to take matters in his own hands. He figured if he hung around by the air vent over the CIC long enough, something interesting might happen. Or his dad would kill him.

Not actually kill him.

His dad loved him too much to kill him. _He hoped._ Decided it was better to focus on the job at hand, he tried to set up his vid-camera just right in the dismal lighting in the vent. It occurred to him that maybe hiding on the CIC itself might’ve been a better plan.

His vid ended up being a very exciting _adventure_ film which featured Indy prominently. The ship AI had detected an ‘intruder’ in the ventilation system. His father wasn’t very amused when the young lieutenant sent into to subdue and retrieve the ‘intruder’ came back with a very contrite nine year old.

He was now grounded for a week.

Suffering for his art.

The vid had turned out awesome though. Indy had begun to play with different filters on his camera. His father had promised to let him enrol in a three month camp next year that was all about cinematography. He couldn’t wait to go.

“Indy?”

“Look Daddy, I finished it.” He twisted his terminal around to let Hackett watch his first complete _story._ He’d been working on it for months and months. “Wanna watch?”

“Trying to avoid the lecture?”

“Another one?” Indy slouched into his chair with a groan. “I won’t go anywhere I’m not s’posed to go on the ship again, I promise.”

“I know, monkey.” Hackett dragged a second chair over to sit in front of his son. “It’s not a lecture. I just need to talk to you about something.”

Indy pulled his legs up so his feet rested on the edge of his chair. His arms wound around his legs. “Did I do something bad?”

“No, no, it’s not…” His father scratched his chin for a second before continuing. “It’s about Andrew.”

“Dew? He okay?”

“Not quite.” He reached out to rest a warm, comforting hand on his shoulder. “He was hurt in a training exercise.”

“He’s gonna be okay, right?” Indy turned fearful eyes toward his father. “Daddy?”

“How about we head back to Rio to make sure he’s going to be fine?” His dad stood up and reached out to pull Indy up into his arms. “You’re getting way too big for this, monkey.”

“Is he really gonna be okay?” He loved Andrew _almost_ as much as his dad.

He kept hoping his dad would ask him to move in with them. His friend Jeff had two parents; he didn’t see the two admirals couldn’t get together. They could have a massive family. It would be brilliant.

He just had to make the two admirals realize it.

* * *

 

_From: Steven Hackett_

_To: David Anderson_

_Subj: re: Rio._

_Mock me at your own peril._

_If I said we’re going to Rio for Indy’s sake then that is why we’re going. The fact that I’m overly concerned for Andrew is irrelevant. It doesn’t matter._

_Speaking hypothetically tough, how much damage to my (and his) career could an open and committed relationship do?_

_I ask because I’m starting to worry that Indy might propose on my behalf just to move things along. He loves his ‘Dew.’ And he gets more and more upset whenever Andrew leaves after we’ve been together. Indy sees him as part of our family. (And yes, I know I’m doing the same damn thing.)_

_My son’s a good kid, but he’s not very subtle or gifted with subterfuge._

_How’s your wife doing?_

_Steven_

* * *

 

The flight to Rio took longer than either father or son could handle without going a little insane. Hackett attempted to distract Indy by talking about his latest vid creation. It worked for an hour at most. He had a truly distraught nine year old on his hands, not that he felt much better.

They were _both_ worried.

“Daddy?”

Hackett rested his hand on his son’s shoulder to offer comfort when they finally stepped into the hospital room. “He’s going to be fine, Indy.”

“But he looks really quiet.” Indy inched closer to the bed. He hesitantly poked a finger at the lifeless hand lying on the top of the crisp, white sheet. “Why’s he so quiet? ‘s not normal for Dew. He’s loud.”

“You saying I talk too much, monkey?” Andrew’s gravelly and groggy voice was music to Hackett’s ears.

“Dew. He’s awake, Daddy.” Indy clambered up onto the foot of the bed to get a better look at his ‘best friend.’ “You look awful.”

“Thanks, kid.”

The doctor came in to check on his now conscious patient. Indy slowly drifted off to sleep, the stress of the day catching up to him. Hackett covered him loosely with a blanket then turned his attention to finding out exactly what had happened.

It seemed Andrew had been in the middle of manoeuvres with the latest N1 class when a pilot lost control of one of the shuttles.   The damn thing crash landed right in the middle of the unit.   The trainers had suffered the worst injuries.

“You know they’re going to give me some shit assignment now. They don’t know how long it’s going to take my back to heal, or if it’s going to ever be at a hundred percent, ever again.” Andrew snorted derisively at the idea of not doing what he loved.

“I have an idea.” Hackett had been stewing on something for a while now. “They’ve finished another section of the Alliance offices on Arcturus. We’re moving the administrative unit for the N7 program there in the next few weeks. You could take charge of that unit? It would let you stay on with the N course without straining your back.”

Andrew’s curious gaze turned shrewdly calculating a moment later. “Why?”

“As it happens, the fifth fleet is being reassigned from the Citadel to Arcturus. I’ll be moving there in a few weeks. It’ll be good for Indiana. He can finally attend the academy, not just classes over the extra-net. He might even make friends his own age for once.” Hackett couldn’t bring himself to mention that he hoped Andrew would move in with them.

“What _exactly_ are you trying to tell me, Steven? I’m a dumb-ass grunt, remember? I need you to spell shit out for me.” Andrew’s smirk told Hackett that he was being toyed with.

“I was hoping…that…”

“Marry us.” Indy’s muffled shout came from underneath the blanket.  He’d obviously gotten tired of eavesdropping in silence.

“ _Indiana Hackett.”_

Indy sat up slowly and the cover fell from his head. “But…that’s what you were going say, right dad?”

“Well…eventually.” Hackett pinched the bridge of his nose and bit back a groan while Andrew laughed himself hoarse earning them all a reprimand from the nurse on duty. “And I believe he’d be marrying me, not you.”

“I think you two are a package deal.” Andrew sipped the water Hackett offered to him. “So was that your question?”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

After waiting for Indy to settle down for the night, Hackett had called in a babysitter to keep an eye him.  He made his way back to the hospital.  Andrew would be waiting to finish their conversation without the nine year old there to offer his input.  It was something they needed to hash out.

“Done hiding behind your nine year old?” Andrew asked around a mouthful of jello.

“It’s hard to take you seriously when you’re eating jello.” Hackett dodged the green square thrown in his direction.  “Now honestly, that doesn’t make me feel like divulging my deepest secrets. I can get this sort of behaviour from the nine year old you just mentioned.”

He received a tired grin for his efforts as Andrew sank back into the pillow behind him. “I always knew the blasted recruits would kill me one day.”

“How are you really?” Hackett moved forward to sit on the edge of the bed. “I’m guessing this particular N1 class failed miserably?”

“I’d toss their asses in the brig, but it wasn’t entirely their fault.” He shoved the tray of food out of the way. “I’ll be fine. Stop stalling, Admiral, you haven’t answered my question.”

“Indiana might’ve jumped ahead a bit, but I hoped you’d move in with me…with us.” Hackett laid his hand on Andrew’s blanket covered thigh.  “We always said we’d give a relationship a _real_ shot, instead of sneaking into each other’s quarters.  Since we’d be working in very different departments, the admiralty can’t say a damn thing about it.”

“And the monkey?”

“The monkey wants you to marry _us_ and wants to make a vid of the whole thing.” Hackett had always thought the whole vid making hobby might be a phase for his son.  Indiana showed no signs of stopping any time soon.  “He wants to make a vid out of everything.”

“Maybe life only looks clear through the lens of the camera for him.”

“So is that a yes?”

* * *

 

_From: David Anderson_

_To: Steven Hackett_

_Subj: re: Indiana._

_Indy will do fine at the academy._

_He’s a charming boy.  He’ll make friends, Steven.  If you stress about this too much, you’re going to make him stress about it.  Just see what happens, perhaps before you solve a problem that doesn’t exist._

_How does he feel about his ‘Dew’ coming to live with the two of you?_

_David_

* * *

 

“Did he say yes? Did he? Did he?” Indy hopped up and down on the bed to wake Hackett up the next morning.  “ _Daddy!_ Wake up! Did he say yes?”

“I’m not a father until after six in the morning, or I’ve had coffee.” He caught his bouncing son to cease his movement. “Did _who_ say yes to _what?_ ”

Indy sat back on his heels and glared at his dad. “Don’t be…ob…ob-something…what’s that word Uncle David uses all the time when he’s grumbling about stuff?”

“Obtuse.”

“Yeah, don’t be that,” Indy nodded enthusiastically.  “Is Dew going to marry us?”

“I’m not sure you understand what marriage means, monkey.” Hackett sat up slowly with a slight grimace when he glanced over at the clock on the wall—barely five in the morning.  “You’re not marrying Andrew.”

“He said _no_?”

When big glue eyes widened then started to fill with tears, Hackett decided teasing his son might’ve been a bad move.  He quickly explained that ‘Dew’ would be moving in with them once they were settled into their new quarters on Arcturus and after the doctors okayed his release from the hospital.  Marriage _might_ come later—much later.  Neither of them wanted to rush things unnecessarily.

“Jeff says you gotta be married to be a family,” Indy insisted, batting away Hackett’s hand when he reached out to ruffle his mass of dark hair. 

“Family isn’t about being married, monkey.” Hackett had seen first-hand that marriage didn’t guarantee a damn thing. “Getting married doesn’t make a family.”

“Dew’s already family.” Indy’s tone and glare brooked no arguments.

_He was his father’s son at times._

“What am I? Varren liver?”

“Ew.” Indy scrunched his nose up in disgust. “I think you smell better.”

“You were such a pleasant toddler. What happened?” Hackett got to his feet then reached down to lift Indy up by the back of his shirt to carry him across the hall to his room. “Time to dress for breakfast.”

“ _Daddy.”_

“Yes?”

“Do you want Dew to be family?” Indy retrieved his vid-camera from the floor and began fiddling with it.

“Considering you both want it, I think I’ve been over-ruled.” He chuckled when his son flung himself into his father’s arms. “So how about breakfast? What would you like?”

“Varren liver.”

“You are not nearly as amusing as you think you are.” Hackett set Indy back down on his feet. “What would you like to do today?”

“Can we go to the construction site? I want to get a vid of the workers. Please?” Indy clutched his camera tightly in his hands.

“Aren’t you still technically grounded because of your last vid?” Hackett asked teasingly.

“But…yeah.”

“How about we ask Mrs. Moreau if she’ll give us a tour?  She’s one of the contractors working on the site.” Hackett guided his son toward his closet. “Get dressed first, I’m not sure your friend or his mother will be impressed by your pajamas.”

“What’s wrong with them?” Indy glanced down at his solar system pajamas. “They’re awesome.”

“ _Awesome._ ”

“Daddy?” Indy darted forward to grab Hackett’s sleeve when he started to leave the room. “I love you.  Even if Dew doesn’t join our family. I think your family is pretty awesome, even when you’re being…obtuse.”

Hackett lifted Indy up into a hug while mentally reminding himself to have words with Anderson. “I love you too.”

 

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“How come your dads aren’t married?”  Nate asked.

“Shh.” Indy hushed his new friend from the academy.  He focused his vid-camera on the construction workers who were building one of the last sections out on Arcturus. “I’m _trying_ to get the perfect vid.”

“All you do is make vids.  It’s _so_ boring.” Nate reached out to bump Indy’s arm, sending his camera flying over the railing and down the flight of stairs. “ _Shit.”_

“My camera.”

With a gasp of horror, Indy flew down the stairs to attempt to catch the camera only to watch it shatter into multiple pieces.   He’d had the camera for _years_.  It was his first _big_ birthday present.  His dad would _not_ be impressed to find it busted.

The squeaking of sneakers drew Indy’s attention to the fleeing figure of Nate.  His friend was probably scared of what his dads reactions would be.  Admirals Hackett and Merrick could be an intimidating duo.  His friends usually refused to attend sleepovers at his place because of it.

Collecting all the bits of his camera, Indy trudged home.  He tried to think up a plausible story for his dads.  They’d be really angry at Nate if he told them the truth. 

“Why the long face, monkey?” Andrew paused in cleaning out his gear to frown at the eleven year old in front of him. “Indy?”

“Where you going?” He got momentarily distracted from the events of the day by the partially packed bag.

“Temporary assignment to BAaT. They’ve been having trouble with some of the biotic kids.” Andrew reached out to ruffle Indy’s hair. “It’s only for a couple of months.  And stop distracting me, why do you look like someone kicked your non-existent puppy?”

With a hitch in his voice and a few sniffles, Indy dumped his broken camera on the table and his broken heart on Dew’s shoulder.  He slumped into the couch cushions after finishing his tall tale.  He stared glumly at the wreckage of his precious.  His bottom lip sticking out of it’s own accord.

“We can fix it.” Andrew lifted one of the larger chunks to get a better look.

“Really?”

“Not a chance, Monkey.  It’s shit…toasted shit.”

“ _Dew.”_  Indy tried to maintain his sad face, but Andrew’s attempts to _fix_ the camera made him giggle.  “How come my friends don’t like my vids?”

Andrew sent him a shred look, but only remarked, “Jeff does.”

“He don’t got no other friends.”  Indy giggled again when Andrew tickled him.  “He thinks I should make funny vids.”

“But?”

“It’s not as cool,” he shrugged. “I wanna be a…”

“Don’t leave me hanging, monkey.”

“Ha, ha.” Indy stuck his tongue out at Andrew. “I wanna be a…I wanna make docu…I wanna make vids about Alliance stuff.”

“Maybe you should wait until you can say the word, eh?”

Indy’s eyes narrowed on Andrew. “You think I’m a joke too.”

“ _Indy._ ” Andrew called out to him as Indy dashed down the hall into his room. “Indiana.”

He hid in the corner of his closet on the floor.  His arms wrapped around his knees as he ignored Andrew.  They never took him seriously. All the kids at school teased him about the vids, ‘cept for Jeff. He tended to poke fun at everyone _but_ Indy.

“Monkey?” Andrew squashed his massive frame as far into the closet as he could get.  He got stuck half-way in much to Indy’s delight. “Stop giggling at me you rabid monster. Now, we need to have a serious talk.”

“Uhuh.”

“Stop giggling.”

“Uhuh.”

“ _Indiana._ ” Andrew stretched an arm out to rest his hand on Indy’s crossed arms. “You know I’m proud of you right?  I don’t get all the vid shit, but what you do is pretty damn impressive.  You’re talented.”

“Yeah.”

Andrew caught him easily by the arms and lifted him over into his lap. “I might tease you, monkey. But I’d _never_ laugh at you.  I’m very proud of you.”

“Promise?”

“Pinky swear.”

“I’m not _five.”_ Indy wrinkled his nose at the finger Andrew held out to him.

“And?” Andrew wiggled his finger until Indy took the ‘swear.’ “You’re never too old for a pinky promise.”

“What on earth are you two doing?” Hackett crouched down in front of the open closet.  “And why is there a destroyed camera on the coffee table in the living room?”

“It broke.” Indy felt all sad again. “I dropped it.”

“You treat that camera like it’s made out of precious gems.  What happened?” Hackett took his son’s hand in his. “Well?”

“Nate bumped my arm.” He never seemed to be able to lie to his dad. “He didn’t mean it to break.”

“I think you’re going to need a new precious.” Hackett squeezed his hand when he turned hopeful eyes toward his father. “I have a surprise for you.”

“You’re getting married?”

“ _Indy.”_

“What?” He grinned at his dad. “You should totally get married.”

“The surprise, you impudent little monkey, is that you get to spend the entire spring break as an intern for Alicia Austin.” His dad caught him easily when he launched himself into his arms.   Alicia Austin had been his idol for the last few years as one of the best military vid makers in the entire Alliance. “I’m going with you, of course.”

“This is so totally awesome.” Indy wiggled out of his dad’s arms to dance around the room. “Thank you! _Thank you.”_

“I think he’s happy,” Andrew marked absently.  He _unsqueezed_ himself out of the closet and got to his feet. “Very happy.”

“You know what would make me super-duper happy?” Indy grinned at the two men.

“No, we’re not getting married.”

“Bummer.”

 

 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“How long exactly do you plan on staying in the damn bathroom, _Indiana?”_ Andrew banged his fist repeatedly against the door.

“Perfection takes time.  Barbarians like yourself simply wouldn’t understand,” Indy said haughtily.  His slight giggle afterward managed to ruin the effect.  “I’m fixing my hair.”

“Barbarian?” Andrew mouthed to Hackett who merely chuckled in response. “Fixing his hair? He’s been fixing his hair for almost an hour. _Your son._ ”

“He is,” Hackett agreed proudly.

“ _Hacketts,”_ Andrew grumbled.  “Indy, if you don’t get your ass out here now, I’m relieving myself in your precious closet.”

Counting down form five in his head, Hackett chuckled once again when Indy raced out of the bathroom before he made it to three.  He gave Andrew a disgusted look then turned to his father for support.  His son feigned a pout when he only shrugged and laughed at both his over-grown child of a partner and his sixteen-year-old son.

“Abandoned in my hour of need.” Indy wilted dramatically onto his bed.  “Why can’t he use the massive bathroom in your room?”

“We broke it.”  Hackett’s lips twitched at the memory of how exactly they’d destroyed the room.

“You broke it? How?” Indy covered his expressive blue eyes with his hands. “Oh. Ew. The mental images.  I’m surrounded by uncivilized cretins. I’m going to need years of therapy.”

“You’re not allowed to watch anymore of those damn nineteenth century romance vids.” Hackett glanced over at his son who was still rambling about the mental torture.  The boy had seemed to over-night turn from a child into an _almost_ grown man.  He’d developed a unique sense of style, calling himself a dandy—another side effect of all the period films.  “I have a surprise for you.”

Indy paused in the process of fixing his _carefully_ arranged hair. “Oh?”

Hackett restrained his urge to roll his eyes.  Indy had become obsessed with his appearance, hair included.  He had the sides of his head closely shaved while the rest of his hair had grown out slightly and was forced into submission with a lot of gel.  “If you could stop mussing with your hair for a second?”

“Just because some of us have no sense of…” Indy trailed off at the glare on his dad’s face. “Sorry.”

“Do you want to hear about the surprise or not?”

“Is it a new camera?” Indy gave him what his son likely thought was his most _winning_ smile.

“No.”

“Fine.”

“Would you stop flopping about so dramatically?” Hackett caught the sock Indy flung at him. “We’re going to the Citadel for a week.”

“Really?” Indy’s eyes were instantly alight with anticipation and excitement. “Is Dew coming?”

“Of course I am.” Andrew finally stepped out of the bathroom, drying his hands off on his jeans much to Indy’s obvious disgust. “We’re leaving in a few hours, so get your ass in gear and pack.”

“Hours?” Indy shot to his feet with a gasp. “How am I going to pack in an hour?”

“Your shits all color coded. How hard could it be to pack?” Andrew reached into Indy’s walk-in closet to grab his customized, pewter traveling trunk.  It had a special compartment for his vid equipment. “Just throw shit in here so we can go.”

“Barbarian.”

Hackett dragged Andrew from the room before the two could get into an argument.  They enjoyed riling each other way too much.  It took Indy two hours to pack and then repack his suitcase.  He finally joined them in the living room, lugging the case behind him.

“I didn’t even know you owned jeans,” Andrew teased.

His son had taken to wearing a lot of suits in the past year and a half.  It surprised Hackett to find the teen wearing faded jeans though the dress shirt, plaid tie, vest and dark green plaid jacket paired with the jeans were definitely more like his usual style.  

Indy grabbed a beige scarf from his jacket pocket and wrapped it around his neck then stared expectantly at his fathers. “Are we going?”

* * *

 

_From: Indy Hackett_

_To: Jeff Moreau_

_Subj: re: the Citadel._

_It’s so brilliant.  I’m attaching a vid for you of everything I’ve seen so far.  I’m going exploring tomorrow. Dad’s got this stupid conference which is very, very dull.  Dew’s going to some spectre training thing, but they won’t let me watch._

_It’s like they assume I’m still ten or something._

_I’m sixteen; I’ll be seventeen in a few weeks.  I’m graduating from school early. I mean, when are they going to treat me like I’m…at least close to being an adult._

_Indy_

* * *

 

Three days into their stay on the Citadel, Indy had grown bored with the Presidium.  He’d decide to explore the station a little more with his dad and Dew both distracted by their meetings.  One of the embassy workers had told him about a spot near the docks where he could get a great view of incoming ships.  It sounded like the perfect place to get some footage for his ‘ _Traveling the Stars_ ’ vid which he planned on using as his submission to the Academy of Performing Arts’ Film and TV school. 

He’d been working on the vid for the last eight months.  It needed to be perfect to get him early enrolment to the academy in Prague.  His dad had cautioned him to not expect to get in, but also encouraged him to do his best.  The Admiral had even gotten him onto several Alliance ships for a week or two at a time during his school breaks for filming.

The application form had already been filled out.  Indy had studied the history of filmmaking, cameras and everything available to him on the extra-net to prepare for it.  The only thing missing was the damn vid. 

Lost in thought about the rest of his film, Indy stumbled to a halt when he realized somewhere along the way a wrong turn had been taken.   The area appeared to be a little slummier than the rest of the station.  He was in the lower words his dad had taken great pains to warn him away from.

“Are you lost _human_?”

Indy recoiled at the way the last word was practically spat at him.  He found himself face to face with two very dangerous looking batarians.  He backed up slowly until he hit a wall. “Not lost.”

“Pretty for a boy.”

Indy cringed at when one of them reached out toward him. “Are all batarians this vile?”

“What the bloody hell…”

Indy _glanced_ at the scarred man standing behind the batarians. “My thoughts exactly.”

“Did you just call the goddamn bastards _vile_?”

“Well, aren’t they?” Indy raised an eyebrow at the man. “I mean, look at them…smell them.”

“How about I just shoot the bastards in the kneecap and be done with it?” Mr. Scarred and Grumpy  turned a pistol toward the batarians who wisely decided to disappear down a nearby alley. “Something I said?”

Indy grinned at him then held out his hand. “Indiana Hackett.”

“Zaeed Massani.” Zaeed glanced from the hand up to Indy’s face then back down. “What the fuck am I supposed to do that?”

“You shake it.” Indy mimed the action. “Or perhaps kiss it?”

“Do I look like the sort of man to kiss anyone’s goddamn hand?” He holstered his weapon and glared at Indy.

“Well, no.”

“So _Indiana Hackett…”_

“Indy,” he corrected.

“Indiana Hackett, what the _hell_ are you doing at a strip club?” Andrew came up beside the man and glanced over at him in surprise. “Massani?”

“He got lost.”

“ _He_ is standing right here.” Indy took a few seconds to meticulously straighten his tie, vest and jacket. “What do you mean what am I doing here? Isn’t it obvious?”

Andrew raised an eyebrow at him.

“Making a new friend.” He gestured grandly toward Zaeed.

“No.”

“But Dew…” Indy smiled winningly at the man he considered to be a second father. “You’re always telling me to make new friends.”

“ _No.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Indy's Hair:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/120612156496/theswagcop-love-like-share-via-facebook
> 
> Indy's Outfit:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/120611874411/the-suit-men-follow-the-suit-men-for-more


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

_From: Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indiana Hackett_

_Subj: re: a favour._

_Massani_

* * *

 

_From: Indy Hackett_

_To: Zaeed Massani_

_Subj: re: a favour._

_But who else am I going to get to portray the tortured anti-hero for my short film?_

_Please?_

_It’ll be fun._

_I can pay…a bit._

_I make really good pie.  Will you work for food? Please? I really need this for my application to this academy in Prague._

_Indy_

* * *

 

_From: Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj: re: a favour._

_What kind of goddamn pie?_

_Zaeed_

* * *

 

“No.”

“But dad…”

“No.”

“You’re being unreasonable.” Indy grumbled with his arms folded across his chest.

“ _Indiana.”_

“What if Dew came with me?” He made sure to give his father the most _innocent_ face with wide eyes and trembling bottom lip.  “Please?”

“That doesn’t work now that you’re a teenager.  Stop it.”  

“And yet, I can see you caving.” Indy leaned against Hackett’s desk chair and rested his head mournfully on his father’s shoulder. “Please? It’s for my academy application.”

“You are _not_ making friends with Zaeed Massani.” His dad gave him a glare which usually meant it was his final answer.

“But what if it could help me get accepted?” Indy tilted his chin so he was looking up into Hackett’s face. “Please, Dad? C’mon. Please? I’ll take Dew with me.  No nasty old bounty hunter could get the best of Dew. He’s a walking tank with hair.”

Hackett snorted at the description of his partner. “Let me talk to Dew.”

“He already said yes.”

“ _Indiana._ ”

“You’ve always taught me to cover all the bases before I make a move.” Indy darted out of the way of his father’s hand. “ _Dad.”_

“Fine, if Andrew has agreed to chaperone.  I can’t see the harm in it, but no making friends with the bounty hunter,” he ordered sharply.

“Is it my fault that people find me so very winsome?” Indy played with his suspenders while smiling sweetly.

Hackett pinched the bridge of his nose with a pained grimace. “That look right there is how you talked yourself out of detention and into a better grade in your physical education course.”

“I play to my strengths.” Indy snapped his suspenders then winced. “Ow.”

“Are you sure you’re my son?” Hackett chuckled at him.

“ _Dad._ ”

“Go charm someone else.” Hackett waved him out of his office. “I have work to do.”

“Fine, fine.  I see where I rate on your priority list.” Indy sighed his most pitiful sigh and trudged with exaggeratedly slow steps toward the door.  He paused to stare mournfully over his shoulder at his laughing father. “Woe as me.”

“You definitely got that from your mother.”

“Grandpa says she was a very charming woman, of course I take after her.” Indy spent a few weeks every summer with his grandparents, though his dad tried to avoid them at all costs.  They’d never gotten over his mother’s death. “Are you going to pick at me constantly about Zaeed being in my vid?”

“Be gone foul beast.” Hackett pointed toward the door. “You won’t goad me into allowing you to be friends with the man.”

Hopping up to kick his heels together which made his dad laugh again, Indy made his way out of the office to head home.  He had a lot of plans to set into motion.  There was also the small matter of convincing Dew it would be a good idea.  It might be easier now that his dad had agreed to it.

He usually didn’t care to lie, even by omission to his dad…dads.  Dew was like a second father even if the men had never married, much to his dismay.  Not that would be that hard to convince the man.  He usually found it hard to deny Indy anything.

“No.”

“But dad said yes.” Indy stepped in front of Andrew to stop him from leaving their quarters. “Please?”

“No, and how disappointed do you think your dad will be when he discovers that you lied.” Andrew caught Indy by the arms to move him out of the way. “I’m not playing chaperone for you to hang around a man like Massani.  He’s dangerous.”

“I’ve been around marines my entire life. Marines who are just as heavily armed as he was.  He saved me on the Citadel.  How does that make him dangerous?” Indy folded his arms and scowled at the man.  He was being unreasonable and Indy hated it when they were unjustly over-protective.  “Fine.  _Fine._ Forget it.”

“Indiana.”

“No, no. You’ve made your point. I’ll figure something out for my vid application.” Indy stormed down the hall and hid in his room with the door sealed.  He collapsed back on his bed to stare up at his ceiling. “Of all the…”

He grabbed his pillow to mutter curses into it until he felt better.  There was no chance of changing Andrew’s mind, and his dad would be furious when he discovered his son had _strayed_ from the truth to get his way.  With another aggrieved sigh, he tried to think of a way to get what he wanted. 

There was no way that this vid would be ruined by irrational fathers.  Indy would deal with being punished if it meant getting what was needed to get into his top choice in schools.  He tossed the pillow to the side and reached out for his omni-tool.  He was going to need a little help with this and he knew just the person.

“Your father will kill me.” Silus Shepard had been a year ahead of Indy, two years ahead of Jeff Moreau.  They’d formed a close friendship in the past year and a half before Silus had graduated.  He was home from a break on boot camp at the moment. “Hell, my parents will kill me.”

“What’s the point of having friends with access to ships, skycars and shuttles if I can’t use them when I need them?” Indy smiled up at Silus who stood a few inches taller.  He’d had a little crush on his friend for months, but sadly nothing ever came of it. “It’ll be fun.”

“Fun like crawling through the vents?” Silus’s dark brown eyes had a very dubious look in them. “Oh, why the hell not, it’s not like I have anything better to do with my shore-leave.”

“Wicked.”

“So where are we going?”

“Benning.”

Six hours later, Indy had all the action-packed footage required to make an epic vid.  He also had a mild concussion from getting hit by falling debris after an explosion at a food storage warehouse on the colony.  Zaeed had promised this was nothing but a simple bounty.  None of them expected to walk into a trap set up for the man.

Silus was pissed off because he knew his ass was about to get chewed the hell out.  “I am so screwed.”

“You’re the son of two Alliance officers, right? So how the bloody hell do you not know how to handle a weapon or defend yourself?” Zaeed shoved his rifle into Indy’s hand before dragging him out of the warehouse toward an open field at the back. “See that tree? Shoot the goddamn thing.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m going to teach you how to shoot.”  Zaeed stepped up behind him to adjust his hold on the rifle. “You plan on filming Alliance shit all the time. Someone’s going to shoot your ass, you need to know how to defend yourself.”

“Get your hands off my son.”

Indy jumped at his dad’s sudden appearance then gently handed the rifle back to Zaeed. “Thanks anyway.”

“I said…” Hackett halted mid-sentence when he noticed the blood on Indy’s jacket and his slightly matted hair. “What happened?”

“He saved my life again.” Indy winced as his dad grabbed him and checked him over carefully. “I’m fine.”

“Fine? Fine?! There’s blood…” His dad touched a finger gingerly to the lump on his son’s head. “What were you thinking?”

Indy lifted up his vid-camera. “The show must go on?”

“ _Indiana.”_

* * *

 

_From:  Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj:re: self-defence lessons._

_I’ll teach you whatever you want to know—after you turn eighteen.  I don’t want to be accused of messing with a goddamn kid._

_How’d the bloody film turn out?_

_Zaeed_

* * *

_From: Indy Hackett_

_To: Zaeed Massani_

_Subj: re: self-defence lessons._

_Film turned out perfectly.  I sent off my application last week.  My head’s fine, thanks for asking.  I’m restricted to our quarters for a month.  I’m sure I can talk my dad out of the last week or so._

_I’m going to be in Prague in less than a year._

_Why doesn’t my dad want me to be friends with you?_

_Indy_

* * *

 

_From: Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj: re: self-defence lessons._

_What do you expect from Alliance bastards?_

_You’ll have to ask him.  I’ve never understood how Steven Hackett’s mind works.  I’m not the worst goddamn person in the world.  And I did save your ass twice._

_The Shepard kid is a good shot.  Why don’t you get him to teach you the basics if your dads won’t?_

_Zaeed_

* * *

 

It wasn’t all that hard for Indy to convince his father to allow him to head out to see one of his only friends.  Silus would be heading back to training in a few days.   He found his friend handing out at one of the many shooting ranges on Arcturus.

“Aren’t you grounded?” Silus secured his weapon then pulled out his ear plugs. “Thanks for telling your dad it was your fault.”

Indy pulled his hands out of the pockets of his jacket and shrugged casually. “Will you teach me how to use that?”

Silus glanced at his rifle then to Indy then back to the weapon. “Seriously?”

Indy eased his jacket off and set it carefully aside before removing his bowtie then unbuttoning the top button of his dress shirt to get more comfortable. “I did think about asking my dad or even Dew, but neither of them seem inclined to me learning anything that remotely appears to seem related to combat.”

“Do they know you’ve been taking fencing and sparring lessons for years?”

“Only because I was really obsessed with those French films for a while,” Indy said calmly. He flexed his arms a bit. “They did make for a good workout.”

“Dancing around with a sword?”

“Ha, ha.” Indy glared at him. “Are you going to teach me or not?”

“Not.” Silus stared pointedly over Indy’s shoulder. “I know someone who might.”

Indy’s shoulders slumped when he glanced back to find his dad glaring at him. “Having a good afternoon?”

“I think you have somewhere else to be Shepard.” Hackett stopped Silus to take the rifle from him then let him head out the door.  He turned to Indy who tried to blend into the wall. “Do you really want to learn how to shoot?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I believe in expanding my horizons.”

“Monkey.”

Indy broke into a broad grin at the nickname.  He hadn’t heard it in a while. “Someone pointed out if I’m going to make serious vids about the Alliance and current events then I need to know how to defend myself and handle weapons.”

“Someone? Does this someone have a name?” His father spent a few minutes meticulously checking the rifle Silus had left behind. “Is it perhaps Zaeed Massani?”

“I…”

“If anyone is teaching my son to shoot, it’s going to be me.” Hackett handed the now unloaded weapon to Indy. “First, you’re going to learn how to clean it, take it apart, put it back together and then load it.”

Indy sighed internally before accepting the weapon. “Teach me, oh, ancient wise one.”

“I am already regretting this.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Silus: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/tagged/silus-shepard


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

_From: Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj: Where’s my goddamn pie?_

_Where is it?_

_You promised me another pie and then you sent me this weird round shit.  Are you sure it’s a goddamn pie?  It’s kinda small._

_And what the bloody hell does ‘I’m cooking through the deepest pit of my despair’ mean? How much of this Lord Bloody Byron have you been reading?_

_Zaeed_

* * *

 

_From: Indy Hackett_

_To: Zaeed Massani_

_Subj: re: Pie._

_It’s a Tart Tropézienne._

_Silus shattered my fragile heart.  He’s decides he wants someone—less like me._

_Am I too dramatic?_

_That was rhetorical.  I know you think I’m a melodramatic fool.  And yes, I also know you’re not interested in ‘every goddamn detail’ of my life._

_Indy_

_P.S. I’ll make you a boring normal pie next week._

* * *

 

Going into his third year at the film academy in Prague, Indy had been rapturously happy with life in general.  His coursework satisfied all his creative urges.  He’d also taken time for a few culinary courses.  He found magic in creating tiny edible masterpieces—and pie.  Lots of pie.

When Indy had turned eighteen, Silus had invited him out for a celebratory dinner.  They’d been dating ever since. _Had been._   A few nights back, his boyfriend of almost two years had come for a visit.  He’d thought maybe it was a good surprise, an early birthday treat.

And then Silus said they needed to talk.  The conversation was very one-sided.  Indy wasn’t doing it for him apparently.  Whatever that meant.  He thought Indy was _too_ dramatic. _Too dramatic?_

Silus had been his first real crush.

And first relationship.

And first lover.

And clearly, his first heart break.

“Indy?”

“I’m in the kitchen.” He blinked rapidly then used his hand to fan his eyes, hoping to mask the signs of crying.  His dads both had the code to his apartment though they usually knocked before barging into his little apartment.  “How do you feel about steak and potatoes for dinner?”

“Is it steak and potatoes or your frilled up version?” His dad teased him like always, but it hit to close to the sensitive spots Silus had left.   He could almost _hear_ his father’s frown when he couldn’t hold back a sob. “Indy? Hey? I love your food, you know that.”

Indy wanted to laugh at the comment, reassure his dad, but he couldn’t get the words out.  He knew Hackett had _always_ supported his interested.  He struggled to speak. “Not about the food.”

His dad took him by the shoulders to turn him around, his eyes narrowing when he got a better look at his son. “You’ve been crying for a while.  Your eyes are all puffy.  So who am I letting Andrew disfigure in the most painful way possible?”

“No one.”

“ _Indiana.”_

He tried to move out of the comfort of his dad’s arms to get back to cooking. “The meat is burning.”

“Well-done is fine.”

“Dad.” Indy twisted around and reached for the pan to deftly flip the tiny medallions of steak. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“So there is an ‘it’ to talk about?” Hackett shifted to the other side of the cramped kitchen.  “Does this have anything to do with Silus?  I expected to find him here with you since your birthday is in a few days.”

“Am I too…Am I shallow?” Indy’s emotions were still raw after the things Silus had said to him.  It was if someone had cut him to the core then shoved him into a deep pool of lemon juice. “I’m an individual. I’m not… _you_. Do you ever think I should be more like you and Dew?”

His dad watched him cook for several long, silent minutes.  His brow furrowed with a slight confused look in his eyes.  “Silus Shepard is a weak fool.”

“Yeah.”

“Listen, monkey, I’m your dad.  I love you no matter what your interests and what you do with your life.” He stretched an arm out to snag a handful of the diced potatoes which Indy had just fried up. “You are _not_ shallow.  You’ve got the biggest heart of anyone I know.  You’ve never met a stranger.  You volunteer to cook for injured Alliance veterans on the weekends.  Silus isn’t worth your time if he dismisses all the aspects to who you are and focuses only on your appearance and style.  It makes _him_ shallow.”

“Yeah.” Indy had to fight off tears again though for a completely different reason—a better reason.  “He was my first.”

Hackett’s fist clenched immediately, crushing the handful of potatoes chunks.  He grimaced at the mess now stuck to his fingers then moved to rinse his hand off in the sink.  “Your first?”

Deciding that laughing at his dad’s unease with the topic would be ill-advised, Indy went back to wrapping up dinner.  He plated the food and set it at the little, square table in his kitchen for them to eat.  He held back a smile as his dad tried to figure out how to approach the delicate subject of his son’s sex life.

“Your first.”

“Yes, dad.” Indy stared morosely down at the beautiful plate of food.  He shoved it away in disgust, appetite gone. “Silus wants someone more manly.”

“More manly?” Hackett set his knife and fork down. “What the hell does he think makes a man? Being a man has nothing to do with muscles, military service or anything physical.  Who the hell does that punk think he is?”

“Dad.”

“No, don’t _dad_ me.  Just because you aren’t in the Alliance and aren’t interested in war, doesn’t make you any less of a man.” His dad pulled up his omni-tool to send a message to Andrew.

Indy banged his head forehead on the table with a groan. “I don’t need either of my dads _beating_ up my ex-boyfriend.  It’s humiliating.  I can handle this myself.”

“I know you can.  It’s not about you.” Hackett gestured toward his plate. “Are you going to eat that?”

Indy gave him a weak smile before handing his plate to him. “Enjoy.”

* * *

 

_From: Andrew Merrick_

_To: Steven Hackett_

_Subj: re: Indy._

_While I’d love to pummel the punk into the ground, I’m not certain it will make Indy feel any better.  It’ll make both of us feel better, but he’s more important than our anger._

_How about we just have a little talk with the little shit?_

_Andrew_

* * *

 

“Admiral Hackett? Major Merrick?” Silus had been testing out a new rifle when the two intimidating men stepped into the range.  “Is there something I can do for you both?”

“I have a son.”

“His only son,” Merrick added helpfully.

“Exactly. My _only_ son.  He’s very precious to me.  He’s always been a little eccentric, but sweeter than honey.  I love that boy.  He’s my pride and joy.” Hackett took measured steps until he stood directly in front of Silus who suddenly wished he hadn’t already pulled the clip from the rifle. “I’ve always tried to prepare myself for his first heart break.”

“Ahh, uhm…sir, you see…”

“I am _not_ interested in excuses, Shepard.” Hackett snapped at him sharply. “I want you to understand something very clearly.  You aren’t worth the flour dusting my son’s hair after he’s baked one of his pastries.   If you couldn’t understand and appreciate what a treasure you had, then I am confident one day, Indy will find someone worthy of him.”

“But until then.” Merrick smiled menacingly at him. He lifted an impressively large hand to grip Silus’s painfully by the shoulder.  “You come near him again, message him or even think about him and I’ll change my mind about rearranging your pitiful face.  Clear?”

“As crystal, sir.”

“Good.”

“Fuck.” Silus breathed a sigh of relief when both men started to stride out of the range.  He had only a moment before a fist connected solidly with his jaw to send him crashing to the ground. “ _Fuck.”_

“That’s for breaking my son’s heart.”

“And you thought you were going to have to worry about _me_ getting physical?” Merrick’s laughter filled the room as the two officers left Silus on the ground.

“ _Fuck.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Food References:  
> Steak: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/121147997956
> 
> Tart: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/121141418456/thebakinghermit-week-86-tart-tropezienne


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

Two weeks after dealing with Silus, Hackett decided to surprise Indy with a weekend trip to the Citadel.  He met up with Andrew and they headed to Prague together.  They knew Indy had a four-day break coming up from the academy.  The kid could use cheering up a bit.  He’d sounded miserable and morose the last time Hackett had spoken with him.

“Is that laughter?” Hackett’s had hovered by the door buzzer. He leaned closer to press his ear against the door.  “I hear Indy, but who the hell has that deep of a laugh?”

“Silus?”

“We broke his nose. He’s not laughing like that for a while.” Hackett decided not to announce their arrival.

Keying in the pass code, Hackett snuck down the short entrance hall toward the kitchen.  He expected to find his son with some of his friends.  It was the particular friend which had Andrew reaching out a hand to restrain him.

Zaeed Massani sat at the small kitchen table with bottles of beer and tiny half-empty plates of food surrounding him.  He appeared to be playing taste-ester while regaling Indy with a tale about a baby varren on one of his bounties.  Indy was clinging to the edge of the counter, tears of laughter on his face.

“Most kids bring home stray dogs.  Why the hell does my son need to bring home a stray merc?” Hackett pondered absently, drawing the attention of the laughing duo.  He glared at Andrew who shrugged. “Helpful.”

“Zaeed’s my friend.” Indy’s glare _almost_ matched the intensity of his dad’s.    “Is there going to be an issue with this? I have chocolate drizzled drunken cherry tarts cooling off over there.”

“Bribery?” Andrew snatched one of the uneaten steak sandwiches on a plate. “I approve though not of your choice in friends.”

“ _Andrew._ ” Hackett heaved a sigh at his partner which turned even deeper when Indy attempted his wide eyed sad stare. “ _Indiana.”_

“Tart?” Indy waved a plate holding one of the tarts under his dad’s nose with his most winning smile. “I used your favourite scotch to marinate the cherries.”

* * *

 

_From: David Anderson_

_To: Steven Hackett_

_Subj: re:  Team Delta._

_I checked with team captain—Major Declan Coats.  The unit is on shore-leave at the moment so they have some free time to help Indy with his project. Coats is particularly interested in the vid-documentary since he’s closely related to someone who was there during the attack._

_I’m surprised you’re not trying to fight to get your son to change the topic for his documentary._

_Fatherhood mellowing you out, Steven?_

_David_

* * *

 

Preparing for his last year at the Academy, Indy has been working on a single project for six months.  His entire graduation deepened on how well the vid-documentary turned out.  He’d already selected the title—Forgotten Warriors.  It would be gritty, dark and full of painful truths. 

_He hoped._

After three years of cooking for disabled marines, Indy had developed a passion for helping them.  His vid would follow the lives of six of them in particular. They were men and women who had been severely injured by a terrorist attack on a training mission on a planet near the edge of the Terminus Systems.  He wanted to tell their story—show how much they’d sacrificed.

It took five long, heated conversations with his father, complete with his most mournful pout, to get the man to say yes.  But finally, the Admiral had agreed to arrange for him to visit the site of the attack in person.  Indy _hadn’t_ been all that surprised when the agreement came with an insistence on his traveling with a full special ops team on a ship captained by David Anderson.

_All for his safety.  Safety? Parents._

Forgotten Warriors would be a full-length feature documentary.  Indy had already filmed a good hour of in-depth interviews with all of the marines.  He planned to get extensive footage of the planet and the area of the attack.  The interviews would be spliced in between.  He hoped it would be enough for his professors.

Standing in front of the floor-length mirror in his bedroom, Indy adjusted the plaid scarf around his neck a few times. He tried to remind himself there was nothing to be nervous about.  He’d been around marines his whole life.

One Major and his unit of specially trained barbarians couldn’t be too intimidating?

_Right?_

Admiral Steven Hackett’s son could be just as brave, strong and confident as his father. 

_Right?_

Adjusting his slate grey jacket, Indy frowned down at his red pants.  He wondered briefly it he’d gone a little too over the top for a group of serious special operations types.  They were his favourite pants though, and tended to make him feel a more confident.  He shifted the silver buckle on his belt slightly.

“Okay, Indiana Hackett, project a calm, confident air of importance.  Not cocky though.  You don’t want to sound like a spoiled prat.  You can face down your dad and Dew.  What’s a group of marines to them?”  Indy cringed at his reflection. “And I am now talking to myself. _Wonderful.”_

The analysis of his mental state was placed on hold when a sharp knock echoed through his small apartment—a very military sort of sound.   Indy smiled at his refection then rushed to answer the door while running his fingers through his hair one last time.  His carefully planned speech of welcome flew right out of his mind the moment he laid eyes on the man.

_Holy cheese on a croissant._

“Indiana Hackett?” The god in Alliance uniform had the sexiest voice Indy had ever heard.  Zeus frowned worriedly at him. “You are Indiana? Admiral Hackett told me this was your place.”

“What? Yes. Sorry.” Indy cleared his throat, fidgeted with the sleeve of his jacket and finally lifted his blue eyes to meet a dark, brown pair which seemed full of amusement. “I prefer Indy.  Are you my escort?”

“Major Declan Coats.”

“Shall we…” Indy paused to race back to pick up a three-tiered travel carrier which contained a variety of min-tarts which he’d made to break the ice with the marines.  He waved his hand absently toward his pewter travel bag. “Could you grab that for me? Careful, it’s got my camera in it as well.”

Coats’ eyes went from the container in Indy’s hands to his red trousers and finally up to his eyes.  “Are you _certain_ you’re related to Admiral Hackett?”

Indy’s smile faded instantly and his eyes narrowed sharply on the man. “His _only_ son.”

Coats’ lips twitched up into a crooked, mischievous grin that had Indy struggling to look away. “There it is—the damn Hackett fire.  I knew you had it in you.”

“Pardon?”

“You’re all nerves.” Coats slung the case over his shoulder and herded Indy out of the apartment.  “Hacketts can always be goaded into getting over themselves.”

Since Indy had no idea how to respond to the obvious tease, he allowed himself to be lead towards a nearby shuttle.  He also ignored the deep chuckle coming from the man beside him.  _Marines._ They were always a troublesome bunch.

Once they had everything situated in the shuttle, Indy took his time observing the major.  The man stood maybe half an inch taller with broader shoulders than Dew had.  He’d never seen someone bigger than his _other_ dad.  Coats’ fatigues seemed carefully designed to exaggerate the muscles of his chest along with his impressive arms.   Indy tried _not_ to think about the strong thighs and what might be between them.

And _oh_ did Indy not only want to think about it, he wanted to see it as well.

His attention shifted to the man’s short brown hair and deep brown eyes.  Indy had the oddest urge to trace the sharp lines of the man’s jaw along with his slightly crooked nose.  He wondered what the story behind it was.

Everything about Declan Coats screamed strength and his hands were something Indy could compose sonnets about.  He wanted to feel the calloused fingers tracing over his skin.  Oh, mercy, those fingers. 

A few hours later, Indy sat in crew mess of the ship with a satisfied smile.  The marines had fallen on his fruit tarts like rabid beasts.  He’d saved a couple of blueberry ones for himself—and the major. 

“Why are we here?” Coats sat across from him, leaning forward with his elbows on the table.

“My documentary.”

“Yes, but why this planet in particular?”

“I volunteer every week—cooking for the marines who were disabled on the planet.” Indy delicately plucked one of the blueberries from the tart in front of him.  “I wanted to tell a story that would capture people’s attention.  What could be more engaging and meaningful than shining a light on those who the admiralty seems to have forgotten?”

“Captain Aidan Coats.”

Indy blinked at him a few times. “He likes my blueberry vanilla custard tarts.”

Aidan Coats was one of the veterans who Indy cooked for on the weekends.  The man had lost both of his legs.  He loved to flirt with everyone though Indy had a feeling the man was in love with one of his fellow former marines—a lovely woman named Mina.    

“He was the commanding office of the unit that was training when the terrorists set off their explosives.” Coats took one of the tarts from the plate Indy had pushed toward him. “He also happens to be my older brother.”

“He adores my blueberry tarts,” Indy repeated unnecessarily.

“I just bet he does.” Coats scowled at him before brushing the crumbs form his shirt.  He reached over to drag Indy up out of his chair and out of the mess into a nearby cabin.  “Time to get you into your armor.”

“Armor?”

Coats lifted a hand up to play with the scarf around Indy’s neck.  “The suit won’t stop a bullet—or a pyjack.”

“You have trouble with marauding monkeys often?” Indy held up his hand with a blueberry carefully pinched between two fingers. He gave Coats his most brilliant, charming smile. “I do enjoy delectable fruits, don’t you?”

Instead of responding verbally, Coats wrapped his fingers deliberately around Indy’s wrist.  His arm felt ridiculously slender in comparison to the size of the Major’s hand.  Coats closed the distance between them, lifting both their arms.  His lips were full, rough and warm when they brushed Indy’s skin to suck the blueberry out of his grasp.

“Delectable.”

Indy pressed his own lips tightly together to stop the giggle which threatened to bubble out of him.  His stomach was doing the strangest flips.  Silus had never made his body attempt gymnastics before.

 “Need a hand with the armor?”

Indy blinked several times before he realized Coats had already released his hand and moved across the room. “Major…”

“Declan.”

“Declan.” Indy gave the man another of his best smiles and had to force himself not to look smug when Coats dropped the helmet in his hand. “Careful.”

Coats retrieved the helmet while sending Indy quelling scowl.   He strode across the room and reached up to slowly untie then remove the scarf from his neck. “I believe you’ll find I’m always as cautious as I need to be.  I know how to handle things with care.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is how I imagine Major Coats: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/122638771881/katieintheclouds-over-a-year-later-and-im
> 
> Blueberry Tarts: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/122682827116/summergardenparty-mini-blueberry-and-custard  
> Other Tarts: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/122700748961
> 
> Indy's outfit: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/122767015206/completewealth-file-under-chinos-blazers


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am drawing a blank for what Indy/Coats first date should be. I am open to suggestions. =)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

Indy’s trip had given him several important things—footage for his documentary, a new group of marine friends and a hot date.  Major Coats had kissed him soundly on his door step then asked him out.  His neighbours had found it highly amusing, whistling and calling out to them both.

An hour later, Indy flitted around his kitchen, preparing his favourite roasted lemon chicken with heavily buttered potatoes.  He alternated between the stove and editing his vid on the terminal set up outside of the kitchen.  He’d finished simmering the sauce for the chicken along with the first ten minutes of his vid when he heard the front door open.

“What would you do if I changed my door code?” Indy had known his dad would want to see with his own eyes that his son had returned safely.  “What would you do if I was entertaining a gentleman friend?”

“A gentleman friend?” Hackett raised an eyebrow at his son in amusement. “You truly are the _oddest_ Hackett in our family tree.”

“No Dew?”  He didn’t bother getting up from the table to greet him.

“Nope.” His dad kissed the top of his head then moved further into the kitchen to inspect the food in various stages of being prepared. “Lemon chicken, buttered potatoes and chocolate mousse?  What happened?”

“Absolutely nothing. I had a marvellous time.”

“These are all your comfort foods, monkey.  You make them when you’re sad, stressed or uneasy. So I ask again, what happened?”  Hackett dipped a spoon into the bowl holding the chocolate mousse that Indy intended to make into a chocolate caramel tart. “Well?”

“I have a date.”

His dad blinked at him several times, spoon hovering mid-air. “And this required comfort food? It’s not the Shepard idiot is it?”

“ _Dad.”_ Indy rushed over to rescue chocolate. “Nosh on the cookies I made earlier, the mousse must be untainted for tart perfection.”

“Do you ever listen to yourself?” Hackett pulled his son into a hug. “So if it’s not the ignorant moron who broke your heart. Who do you have a date with?”

“Declan.”

“Declan. _Declan._  Declan?” His dad pushed him back and stared sternly at him. “Declan as in Major Declan Coats? The man I trusted to keep you safe.”

“And he did.”

“ _Indiana.”_

Indy offered his dad the bowl with the mousse and spoke in a slow, dramatic voice.  “You want to eat the chocolate.  You don’t want to know about my date.”

“Hypnosis? Really?” Hackett set the bowl on the counter.  “So tell me about Declan Coats.”

They spent several hours chatting about his trip _and_ Declan.  Indy didn’t bother with plating or prettying up the food.   He sat at the table with his dad, picking at the roast chicken and potatoes straight from the pan.  It was something they used to do when he was still learning to cook.

“So you like him?” Hackett tapped his spoon impatiently on the table, waiting for Indy to serve up slice of the chocolate tart. “You really like him?”

“Oh yes.”

“At least he’s not an idiot.” Hackett reached over to grab the plate the moment Indy had set the dessert on it.  “And he’s not older than me.”

“Or a bounty hunter?” Indy teased.

“Wretched monkey.”

“See, I am improving your vocabulary. You’d never use words like wretched without my immense influence.” Indy dropped a dollop of cream on his own portion of the dessert.  “He didn’t see Admiral Hackett’s son, or a shallow weakling.  He saw _me._ ”

“You are _not_ shallow or weak.” His dad’s eyes narrowed with concern evident in them.  He stretched his arm out to take Indy by the hand. “You’re a strong man. You know who you are, what you enjoy and you aren’t ashamed of it.  I’m _proud_ of you, son.  Proud to be your dad, proud of the man you’ve grown into.  And anyone who thinks you are shallow has never taken the time to get to know you.”

“ _Dad.”_ Indy brushed impatiently at the tears which sprung up. “Thank you.”

* * *

 

_From: Indy_

_To: Aidan_

_Subj: Declan._

_Does he have a favourite food? Drink? Fruit? Dessert?_

_Anything?_

_I need all the details of his favourite edible preferences._

_I will procure blueberry tart for you as payment._

_How goes your own amorous intentions?_

_Indy_

* * *

 

_From: Aidan_

_To: Indy_

_Subj: re: Declan._

_Oh, I see how it is.  You fickle, fickle beast._

_You meet my uglier brother and suddenly, I’m old news._

_Fine, fine._

_He has a sweet spot for strawberries and blackberries. He eats his steak almost rare and has never met a Shepard’s pie he didn’t love._

_A very large, muscular birdie told me that he asked you out on a date._

_Forget him, run away with me._

_My love life is non-existent.  She treats me like her best buddy, not date potential._

_Aidan_

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Chicken: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/123597742326
> 
> Potato: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/123738650551/foodffs-fresh-herb-roasted-potatoes-really-nice
> 
> The Tart: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/123597966016/im-horngry-chocolate-caramel-treats-as


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

Indy spent a fair amount of his time perusing his wardrobe most days.  Three hours, however, did seem fairly excessive even to him.  He wanted the perfect out fit for his date with Declan—one which would make a statement.

He held up his favourite pale-blue, ruffled shorts.  He had a variety of silk undergarments in his wardrobe.  There were stockings and garters to match each of them.

With his previous experience of how his lover had responded to his clothing preferences, Indy had second and third thoughts about it.  Silus had been disgusted by it, by him.  It had been humiliating, not something he was anxious to repeat.  Forcing his fingers to relax around the delicate silk, Indy reassured himself there was nothing wrong with being different.

 The one humiliatingly awkward talk he’d had with Dew about it over a year ago had convinced him.  While Dew didn’t ‘get’ his clothing preferences on a personal level, the man had insisted it didn’t and shouldn’t matter.  He’d even gone shopping with Indy once. They’d both sworn never to do that again—ever.

He’d appreciate Dew being there for him.  It touched him that Dew would go with him despite feeling uncomfortable.  He’d always felt confident in his relationship with his father—fathers.  He trusted them with his secrets, not that he had many.

 He fingered the silk in his hand anxiously.  How would Declan respond?  Would he be disgusted? Or would he enjoy it?

Putting the unanswered questions aside, Indy returned his attention to more important things like the outfit that would go _over_ the surprise underneath.  They were staying in for their first date.  But just because he was at home, didn’t mean he should look like a slouchy cretin.

Once the intricate undergarments were on, Indy went with dark blue linen trousers, a matching vest along with a white button-up shirt.   It was a little mild for his tastes so he added a colourful silk scarf which he turned into an intricately knotted cravat.  He styled his hair then returned to the kitchen to finish the food.

“Don’t look.”

Indy snapped his eyes shut then smothered a giggle when they bumped into each other. “How do you intend for me to invite you in if I can’t see where either of us are going?”

Large, strong hands gripped his shoulders; Indy smiled into the surprise kiss Declan gave him.  They both chuckled as he was guided backwards into the kitchen. He stayed leaning against the countering, fidgeting with his sleeves until Declan called out ‘all-clear’ before sternly warning him to avoid even thinking about glancing into the living room.

_Oh the temptation._

He resisted by finishing up the last of the little peach, prosciutto and cheese crositini.  Declan had promised a night in if Indy would prepare the food.  He’d opted for little bites instead of a full meal.  There were onion and mushroom tartlets, a thinly sliced steak wrap and blackberry tarts for dessert.  He had no idea what Declan had planned, but the sounds coming from the living room were intriguing.

“Smells good.” Declan passed through carrying a large container.

What _was_ going on in his living room?

Plating up all of the hors d’oeuvres, Indy arranged them carefully on a silver tray then collected a pair of stemless wineglasses.  He had a bottle of wine already chilled.  He started into the room only to stop on the threshold to stare in amazement at the transformation.

“How marvellous.” Indy took in the elaborate tent situated in front of him.  He tapped his finger against one of the strings of lights draped around them. “What…”

“Vid night.” Declan took the tray and set it in front of a mound of pillows on the floor that faced the vid-screen.  “I happened to find a documentary from the twenty-first century on film-making and war reporting.”

“This is…” Indy struggled to find the right words for the touching and romantic gesture. “Divinely perfect for a first date.”

“Tell my stupid bastard of a brother that, will you?  He said I’d lost my damn mind.” Declan waited until Indy had situated himself amidst the pillow before sitting behind him. He easily shifted the slighter man between his legs until Indy rested against his chest. “Aidan knows shit about romance.”

Indy only had a moment to process that before he found one of the blackberry tarts hovering in his mouth in Declan’s hand.  He decided to first lick a drop of cream one of his fingers before taking a bite. “Delectable, if I do say so myself.”

“Me? Or your cooking?” Declan captured Indy’s chin to twist his head around slightly in order to lick and suck some of the custard left behind on Indy’s bottom lip. “Or you? Definitely you.”

They were midway through the documentary when Declan’s fingers began to wander.  Indy held his breath while his upper body was fully explore.  He found it damn near impossible to focus on the vid while blunt nails scraped across his nipple.  They drifted down into the top of his trousers then froze.

“I…”

“Well, damn, Indiana, you do have hidden depths, don’t you?” Declan didn’t give him a chance to respond or react.  He flipped them around on the pillows so Indy was stretched out underneath him while he made easy work of peeling Indy’s trousers off him to reveal the treasures underneath.  “Fuck.”

“You see…I enjoy…”

“I promised myself I wouldn’t try anything on our first date. I’m a fucking gentleman.  But I’d love nothing more than to show you how much I _like_ you in these.”  His hands gripped Indy by the hips while his fingers traced the edges of the ruffled panties. “Are they for me?”

“For me.”

“Can I enjoy anyway?” Declan gave him a wicked smirk.  He bent forward to suck on Indy through the blue silk. “Now I’m going to pull your fancy trousers back up and we’re going to watch the damn documentary.”

“We are?”

“And on our next date…” Declan paused for another lick along the fabric. “I want to see these again.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tent:   
>  http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/124759577026/cuddleforts-cuddle-forts
> 
> Clothing Reference:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/123806560691
> 
> Food Reference:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/124446406681/recipese-peach-prosciutto-and-goat  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/124446355356/radioactivetangerines-onion-mushroom-and  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/123740640456/fyomnomnom-blackberry-petit-four-by-marcelo


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

Aside from helping him graduate with full honours, Indy’s vid had garnered him a lot of attention amongst the Alliance ranks.  The veterans which had been featured in the documentary had all _loved_ the it and the great respected he’d shown in telling their story.  They’d shared the vid with their friends who did the same until it finally ended up on the desk of an admiral who happened to be the head of the Alliance Public Affairs Office. 

Three weeks after his graduation, Indy had been invited to film his next documentary while embedded with marines on tour.   The Public Affairs office wanted to be able to use footage for their own recruitment vids.  He had jumped at the offer.  Those sorts of invitations didn’t often come to vid-makers fresh out of university.

And it being Declan’s unit he was assigned to?  That was just an added bonus.  Life couldn’t get any better for him.  He had a brilliant opportunity to create the films of his dreams while spending time with his boyfriend traveling to planets unknown.

His father had been _less_ enthused—not about the work—but about the boyfriend.  He assured his son, however, that he was prouder than he could possibly express.   Indy had never doubted it.  The admiral always went out of his way to encourage and praise his son.

They were three days into his first jaunt with the spec ops unit when Indy hit on a brilliant idea for his documentary, aside from the recruitment vid he had to shoot. The unit had been directed to Akuze—the site of a tragic loss of lives several months prior.

The cause, a thresher maw, had apparently been dealt with.  Declan and his strapping group of special operatives had been tasked with retrieving a sensitive piece of equipment that had been left behind to monitor things.   It provided the most brilliant opportunity for filming.

_What better to follow up his first serious attempt at film making than to a documentary about the tragic loss on Akuze?_

“No wandering off.” Declan warned Indy for the tenth time while carefully buckling him into his armour.  “Don’t pout at me. I’m immune and it looks ridiculous with you all geared up like a proper marine.”

“I _never_ look ridiculous.” Indy turned wide eyes toward the man.  “Am I not charmingly adorable?”

“Still immune.”

Indy wanted to kiss the smirk off the man.  They did their best to stay professional in the public areas of the ship.  Indy had looked to his dad and Dew for his example.  Those two kept a slight distance between themselves at all times when in uniform.  He wanted to show Declan’s career the same respect that his fathers showed each other.

After promising to stay close to marine assigned to him, Indy went to work attaching several tiny cameras to the armour of several of the soldiers.  He had one on his own helmet along with the actual vid-camera which travelled everywhere with him. He wanted as much footage to pick through as possible.

With his brand-new camera hovering behind him like a flaying puppy, Indy trekked his way through the crater that had once held a thresher maw nest.  He climbed out the other side, trying not to think about the scratch marks on the ground.  They looked like fingers had dug into the dirt.  He distracted himself by investigate the western side which was furthest away from the attack site—and the colony.

Ducking through thick underbrush, Indy found himself standing in a poorly hidden pathway.  He brushed aside loose leaves to find old Mako tracks.  They lead away from the colony into what he’d thought was uncharted territory.  The colonists hadn’t gotten around to finishing up their mapping out of the planet.

_So where did these tracks lead?_

All the marine vehicles were accounted or—ages ago. They’d all been found on the eastern side of the small crater.  The indentions had been left by the explosion used to kill the maws. 

Twenty minutes later, Indy had lost his guard and was hunched down behind a small embankment.  He stared in bewilderment at what appeared to be an underground bunker.   His promise not to wander had been completely forgotten in the rush of excitement over a potential mystery to solve and film.

“What the bloody hell are you doing?”

Indy started violently in surprise, his hand resting over his heart.  “You stealthy…are you trying to frighten me half to death?”

Zaeed knelt on the ground beside him.  “I repeat, what the bloody hell are you doing?”

“A tad bit of sleuthing.”

“Sleuthing? More like putting your arse in danger.’ Zaeed batted away the camera Indy sent into his face. “Move it or I bust the goddamn lens.”

“Touchy, touchy.” Indy got to his feet, brushing the leaves and dirt from his armour. “Why are you here?”

“Sleuthing,” Zaeed smirked at him.

“Well, onward then.” Indy felt more secure since Zaeed was with him.

Sure, Indy could handle himself relatively well and was even a decent shot.  But the creepy underground bunker seed like a much better idea with an armed bounty hunter at his side.  Plus, Declan couldn’t claim he’d wandered off alone.

_What on earth would Declan have to say about Zaeed?_

_And what would Zaeeed have to say to Declan?_

“What is this place?” Indy hesitantly investigated the surrounding area while Zaeed worked to bypass the door lock.  He frowned at the indentions in the ground where shuttles and a Mako had clearly rested at one time.  They definitely didn’t look fresh.  “This place has been abandoned for weeks.”

The door finally slide open sending a rush of stale air at them.  Indy hit the spotlight function on his camera then sent it off in front of them.   They could see overturned tables in some of the side rooms along with datapads and other items strew across the floors.   Someone had left in a hurry.

A weird chirping sound caught Indy’s attention.  He stepped over damaged crates to push open what looked like a storage locker.  A second later, he barely had time to register the shout from behind him before his head erupted in a blaze of fire and pain.  He slid into unconsciousness as Zaeed rushed forward to catch him.

* * *

 

_From: Andrew_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: Arcturus._

_You’re going to want to cut your meetings in Vancouver short.  And by short I mean your ass better be on a ship back here within the hour or I’m coming to get you._

_Indy’s in intensive care._

_A rocket drone caught him off-guard.  He took a blast to the head.  His helmet partially protected him, but at close range…you get the idea._

_He’s a very seriously injured monkey.  His face is going to be scarred. They’re worried about his right eye as well as the potential for brain damage._

_He’s going to hate the hospital gown they put him in.  Too plebeian for his tastes._

_I love you.  I won’t leave his side. But get your ass to Arcturus._

_Andrew_


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

Arriving to the hospital in time to stop a brawl _hadn’t_ started Hackett’s day off well at all.  Zaeed and Declan had been at each other’s throats with Andrew in serious conversation with doctors, completely unaware of the chaos in the waiting room.  He got between the two men before the nurses could call for security though it might benefit both idiots to settle down in the brig for a day or two.

Indy might not find it as amusing as his father did. 

“Admiral.” Declan stayed against the wall that Hackett had pointed him toward though his glare remind focused on Zaeed.  “He was the only one anywhere near Indy at the time.  How do you know the bastard didn’t do something to him?  Are you going to let him….you can’t approve of a man like him.”

“No, I don’t. I don’t approve of you either so don’t gloat.  I learned a long time ago that when it comes to brining strays home—my son has a mind of his own.”  Hackett knew his gaze had turned hard when even a hardened veteran like Coats took a step back.  “Indiana has always made his own decisions about who he finds worthy of friendship.  I respect his unique perspective on life.  I’d avoid proving him wrong if I were you.”

“And he’ll bury your arse in the fucking ground if you do anything to break the monkey’s confidence.” Andrew joined them in the waiting room.  He turned to Zaeed.  “The doctor claims you saved his life.”

“Convenient.”  Declan seemed stubbornly insistent on having an issue with Zaeed.

“And you let him bloody wander off on his own.”  Zaeed snapped back at him.

“As proved by the day you met him, my son will wander off with his camera not matter what you tell him or who is with him.” Hackett had never wanted to squash Indy’s desire to investigate and explore.  He ignored the two idiots.  Indy could deal with them when he was better.  He pulled Andrew to the side to find out when _precisely_ that would be. “So? How’s the monkey?”

Andrew suddenly appeared to have trouble meeting his partner’s gaze.  “He…”

“The truth, please?” Hackett rested a hand on Andrew’s shoulder, drawing him close so he could rest their foreheads together.  “How badly hurt is our monkey?”

Andrew’s breath came out in a rush.  It caused Hackett’s beard to flutter lightly.  “It’s too early to tell.  He…his face…fuck Steven.  He’s badly burnt.   The helmet kept him alive, Massani helped, but there’s a lot of damage.”

He closed his eyes while Andrew’s arms went around him.  It was the only thing keeping Hackett from slumping to the floor on his knees.  He clung to one important fact—Indy would never been held back by anything. 

_If he lived._

Indy had to survive.  The world would be a shadow of itself without him in it.  Hackett _would be_ a shadow of himself if his son died.

* * *

 

_From: Aidan_

_To: Declan_

_Subj: re: Indy._

_Poor kid._

_Bring him to my place when he wakes up.  It might help him to be around others who’ve survived explosions._

_And stop being so bull-headed about the bounty hunter.  You don’t have to like the man or talk to him.  He is Indy’s friend so I’d suggest you shut your trap around him.  If Admiral Hackett and Admiral Merrick aren’t bother, it would be smart for you not to be bothered._

_I’ve seen Massani around Indy.  He’s good for him.  He helped the kid get his confidence back after that little shit Shepard._

_How is Indy?_

_How are you? You know this wasn’t your fault, right?_

_Aidan_

* * *

 

Indy woke up to the sound of snoring—a cacophony of it.  He opened his eyes to find his vision skewed.  A tentative exploration found a bandage covering much of his head along with his right eye.  In the dim lighting, his _good_ eye made out three sleeping figures: Zaeed, Declan and Dew—all snoring their heads off while slouched uncomfortably in chairs to his left.

To his right, his father sat rigid by his bed with his eyes wide open.  His hand clutched one of Indy’s though his gaze seemed focused on the monitors next to the bed.  He looked like he hadn’t slept in days.

_It couldn’t have been days, could it?_

“Dad?” Indy found speaking to be a painful experience and tried again with his voice still pitched low since the admiral hadn’t budged an inch.  “Dad?”

Hackett was out of his chair, leaning over Indy before he could get another word out. “Thank god.  _Thank. God._   Can you tell me your name?”

“Beau Brummel?”

“ _Hilarious.”_ His dad shook his head. “Now is _not_ the time for wit.”

“Indiana Hackett.” Indy didn’t have the heart to tease his dad further.

“Your age?”

“Twenty-three.”  
“Do you know what day it is?” Hackett reached over to press a button on the bedside table.

“It was Tuesday, but…how long have I been out?” Indy held his dad’s hand as tightly as his weak body could manage.  “I remember Akuze and an explosion.  Am…Am I…”

“Are you what?”

“Horribly disfigured.” Indy could tell his face had been damaged.  His skin felt too tight—too tender.  “Am I hideous? I ‘m confident this… _garment_ …isn’t helping.”

“Goddamn it.” Zaeed grumbled sleepily. “I owe Merrick fifty credits. He said you’d bitch about the hospital gown.”

“How very touching.” Indy clung to his dad’s hand when he tried to pull away.  “But seriously, did they manage to piece my perfection back together?”

“Monkey.” His dad brushed his fingers tenderly along Indy’s jaw.  “You almost died.  I could’ve lost you.  So I’m going to ignore the surface focus on your looks, and assure you that you won’t lose your sight.  You won’t lose that magnificent brain in your head.  But if you _ever_ scare me like that again, I’ll…figure something suitable out.”

Indy wanted to hug his dad.  He couldn’t seem to convince his body to move. “Dad?”

Hackett sat on the edge of the bed and gently pulled his son into a gentle embrace. “Please don’t do that to me again.”

“Duly noted. I shall endeavour to avoid rogue drones in the future.”  He hid his smile against his dad’s shirt. “Should I also become a clairvoyant who knows when danger is right around the corner?”

“ _Indiana.”_

The other three men in the room shot up in their chairs when the door opened.  Indy had to smother a quiet giggle at the looks on their faces.  He didn’t think they’d appreciate him finding humour in their obvious concern for his health.  He felt guilty for wandering off, especially when he noticed the dark circles under all of their eyes.

“Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” He beamed at Zaeed when he chuckled. “Seriously though, we can celebrate once the doctor’s poked and prodded me to make sure I’ve retained my glorious sense of style and innate brilliance.”

“He’s fine,” Andrew remarked idly.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone enjoys it.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, subscriptions and comments.
> 
> Bioware Owns All, sadly.
> 
> Beta: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929

“I require a mirror.” Indy had taken two days to work up the courage to ask for one.  He’d also waited until he was alone with Zaeed.  He stared down the bounty hunter who simply raised an eyebrow at him. “I am not beyond sulking and begging until you cave.”

Zaeed seemed uneasy about it.  He managed to procure a mirror from the nurses’ station.   Indy thought he’d probably charmed it out of one of them.  

“Well?” Zaeed sat back in his chair with his boots propped up on Indy’s bed.  “Are you going to look at your ugly mug or not?”

“Ugly?” Indy sniffed exaggeratedly at him while clutching the mirror in his fingers.  “I’m certain I’ll wear scars better than you ever could.”

“Think they’ll mind if I smoke?” Zaeed pulled a lighter and cigar from a pocket.  He pointedly ignored Indy’s moment of crises, or more than likely trying to help distract him from it.  “Want a puff?”

“Yes, they willl mind you barbarian.” Indy had chosen to do this with Zaeed for this precise reason.  He managed to be there for Indy while appearing completely disinterested.  He tilted the mirror up and caught his first glimpse of his face. “Oh.”

“What the bloody hell does ‘oh’ mean?” Zaeed flipped his lighter around absently.  He still hadn’t so much as glanced in Indy’s direction. “Well?”

“I look like my dad.” Indy stared at his reflection while tracing the jagged scar on his cheek.  “My perfectly pristine skin is no longer flawless.”

“Bizarre kid.”

“Zaeed?”

“Hmm?”

“Thanks.”

“Shut the bloody hell up and let me enjoy my contraband.” Zaeed ended up stowing his cigar and lighter as one of the nurses chose that moment to enter the room. “Mornin’”

Indy smothered his laughter behind his hand.  “ _Zaeed.”_

* * *

 

_From: Aidan Coats_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj: Recovery._

_Hospitals are never fun. They stink.  My idiot brother refuses to bring the singing blasto plushie to you.  His loss and yours.  You’ll simply have to do without it._

_So get better quick, yeah? I need you to cook for me._

_Aidan_

* * *

 

The day Indy was released from the hospital.  His escort of four were all incredibly terse with one another.  He wondered if he could find gloves so they could slap each other dramatically in the face.  He’d seen the men in his favourite vids do it when their honour was besmirched. 

He envisioned his dad and Zaeed exchanging elegant slaps with delicate gloves and dissolved into hysterical giggles.   The men in question frowned at him, almost identically, which sent him off even more.  Declan stepped closer when he began struggling to stay upright.

“Breathe, monkey,” Andrew encouraged.

“Hurts.”

“Then stop giggling like a goddamn rabid hyena,” Zaeed snapped sharply.

Hackett tilted his son’s head up once he’d stopped laughing.  “Your scar is still healing.  You’re going to need to at least attempt to stay calm.”

“I am the _epitome_ of collected.” Indy gave an exaggerated sigh when they all chuckled at him.  “Philistines.”

“Where did you go wrong?” Andrew nudged Hackett with his elbow.

“Me? You were there for most of it.”

“And yet, I have surpassed you both in looks and style.  I’ve turned out better than you could’ve hoped.” Indy flicked non-existent dust from his vest. “Was I adopted?”

“You? Adopted? No, that arrogance is _all_ Hackett.” Declan looked entirely unrepentant when both Hacketts glared in his direction.  “What? It’s clearly genetic.”

“Point to the over-muscled Alliance idiot.” Zaeed pulled out his cigar and lit it.  He flicked ashes at Declan then winked at Indy. “Try not to goddamn kill yourself.”

Indy watched him walk away then turned toward the remaining three men. “Well? I require sustenance.”

“You require a swift kick in the ass.” Andrew grabbed him by the shoulders to lead him toward a waiting shuttle. “One of these days, monkey, one of these days.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

“Declan.”

“Indy.”

“Declan, darling.”

_“Indiana.”_

“Deccie-Poo.”

Declan immediately lost the ‘serious glare’ challenge with a massively loud snort.  He laughed until he made himself hoarse. “ _Never_ repeat that ever again.”

“But darling, Aidan would be _so_ fascinated by our little pet names.”

He snatched Indy up from where he’d draped himself across a chaise lounge and over onto the couch into his lap. “My brother doesn’t need any more information about our relationship.”

“Am I too horribly disfigured to be attractive?” Indy’s sudden change in topics had Declan’s mind struggling to catch up.  Indy had always seemed to hide any insecurity with over-confidence.  He’d been a little off his game since Akuze.  It was surprising that the Admiral hadn’t come to visit sooner.  His slender hands went up to mass age the scarred tissue on his cheek and jaw carefully. “ _Well?”_

“How about how show you how fucking gorgeous you are to me?” Declan flipped them around so he was stretched out over Indy on the couch.  He started on the linen trousers that Indy wore, sliding them off easily since he was already barefoot.  His movements came to a sharp halt when he caught sight of the pale, silk panties the younger man had on underneath.  “I do love when you dress up for me. You naughty, naughty thing.”

“One, I am _not_ a thing. Two, I dress up for myself.”  Indy smiled primly up at him then dissolved into laughter when Declan teased the underside of his knee.

“Mind if I enjoy it anyway?” Declan snuck a finger under the edge of the panties, pulling the fabric out and letting it snap back.  His smile widened when Indy gasped.  “This’ll be fun.”

“ _Declan.”_ Indy’s fingers latched onto his hair while he licked and nipped at his cock through the silk. “Please?”

“Oh, you beg so prettily.” Declan winced slightly when Indy yanked on his hair. “Too much?”

He was distracted from responding by Declan beginning to remove the rest of his clothing.   Indy had never been treated as priceless by a lover.   His sexual encounters had been good though not _great._

Declan seemed to want to worship his body.  Every inch of his exposed skin was caressed and kissed as he stripped Indy naked.  He felt like more than merely a notch on a bedpost for the first time.

“You’re thinking to bloody much.” Declan sucked briefly on the tip of Indy’s cock before taking it into his mouth.

“Oh my…” Indy thought for a second he might bite through his own tongue. Silus had certainly never done _that_ with any real skill.  “Good gracious.”

It was impossible for him to focus fully on the head bobbing over him.  Indy could do nothing but throw himself into the vast depths of pleasure.  Declan seemed intent on taking him to the very heights of sexual bliss—or demonstrating his impressive abilities. 

Trying not to pull too roughly on Declan’s hair, Indy enjoyed the façade of controlling the pace.  He felt rather proud of himself for not embarrassing himself by achieving the summit at the first lick.  A slight humming noise brought a series of vibrations which proved his undoing.  It trigged his climax and left him sated.  He wilted into the cushions with Declan watching him in smug amusement.

“Good?” Declan asked before cleaning him with light licks.

“Heavenly.” Indy twitched underneath his gentle teasing. “Don’t.  I cannot possible handle more right this second.”

“You’d be surprised what I can get you to do.” Declan wiggled his eyebrows at him exaggeratedly then finally lifted himself up to stretch out beside Indy.

“Shall I return your generous favour?” Indy ran his fingers along Declan’s strong jawline then moved tentatively along his neck to rest on his broad, muscled shoulder.

“Later.  I’ve worked up an appetite.” He snagged the panties left on the floor and dropped them on Indy’s chest.  “Put these back on.”

“Demanding cur.”

“And Indiana? Just the panties.” Declan’s eyes glittered with obvious desire.  “I plan on enjoying the fucking view.”

Rolling out from under him, Indy got to his feet and bent lower than necessary to slide the panties back on.  He laughed when Declan swatted him on the ass.   He had no intentions of not thoroughly enjoying the man.

“How about popcorn?”  Indy reclined on his chaise lounge with a glass of wine dangling from his hand several minutes later, recovering from there _exertions._  He ignored Declan who had been periodically tossing popcorn at his head. “Must you be  _so_  uncivilized?”

“Who the hell drinks wine with popcorn?” Declan snorted in amusement as Indy batted away yet another tossed projectile. 

“It’s seasoned corn that I made myself.” Indy sniffed at him before plucking the offending piece from inside his collar. “I know this might sound strange, but most people choose to eat the popcorn.”

“I am.” Declan crammed a handful into his mouth. “See?”

"You’re not allowed to eat with Dew anymore. He’s clearly a terrible influence.” Indy sipped his wine. “”Ill-mannered marines.  What do you plan to do for your encore?”

“Is that a challenge?” Declan sat up straight on the couch with a gleam in his eyes. “Is it? Are you challenging me?”

“Are you five?” Indy rolled his eyes only to narrow them a moment later when Declan moved towards him. “What...”

He caught Indy by the leg and dragged him to the floor. “Let’s see about that encore, shall we?”

 


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

The following morning, Declan was on his way to a covert operation.  He’d refused to tell Indy anything about it or let him tag along.  They’d already said their long, thorough goodbyes—twice in fact.  He’d sent the man on his way with a container of specially made pastries which would likely last maybe five minutes amongst the marines.

His apartment appeared muted in the lonely morning light.  With a dramatic groan, Indy forced himself off the bed to dress for the day.  So what if his lover had swanned off for six months?  The world would hardly stop spinning as a result.

Right?

Besides, his father intended to visit for lunch.  Indy refused to give him a reason to worry about or tease his son.  He wouldn’t mope around like a love-sick fool, not in front of the admiral.  How many times had his dad and Dew been apart? They’d never shown overt signs of missing each other.

Scrunching up the bow tie in his hand, Indy tossed it into the drawer and selected an indigo-coloured scarf inside.  It would go better with the blue shirt and dark blue trousers he intended to wear.  He finished dressing then dithered over shoes for a while.

“Monkey?”

“I’m clothed.” Indy called out when his dad coughed outside his bedroom door. “Honestly, dad, how do you suppose I should interpret your coughing?  You could’ve just knocked.  Why did I give you a key to my apartment? You never use in an emergency.”

“Interpret them inventively. You’re a clever kid.”

“Did you abscond with my thesaurus again? I am _not_ a kid.” Indy sniffed derisively at him before dodging the hand that moved toward the back of his head. “Are you ready for a light repast?”

“A light repast?” Hackett shook his head before stepping closer to straighten Indy’s collar.  He inspected the scar on his cheek carefully.  “How are you doing, monkey? Any residual pain or nightmares?”

Indy waved away the gentle fingers.  “I’m perfectly fine.”

“And I’m the Queen of Sheba.”

“Your highness.” He gave a perfectly executed curtsey which had his dad laughing. “I haven’t suffered from any terrible dreams.”

His dad reached out to take him by the back of the head.  He pulled Indy forward until his forehead rested against his dad’s chest. “How did a Hackett ever turn out to be such a terrible liar? I’m sure you’ve had nightmares about losing your vision.  And I’m sure you’re missing Declan already.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you.”

“You are clearly suffering from some form of dementia. Is Dew aware of your loss of your faculties?” Indy moved back in front of the mirror to adjust his cravat. “Well? Brunch?”

“How about we have something…”

“Dad?” He glanced over his shoulder in concern when the man went silent. “Problem?”

“Why do you have a diamond-studded navy blue eye-patch?” Hackett held up the patch by the strap. “Well? Indiana?”

“Would you believe I went temporarily blind?”

“No.”

“Would you believe…”

“Indy.”

“It distracts from my horrible disfigurement,” Indy admitted with a heavy sigh.

“Oh, son.”

“How do steak and eggs sound?” Indy attempted to evade the inevitable reassurances.

Wrapping an arm around his son, Hackett directed him to the floor length mirror attached to the closet door.  He gripped Indy firmly by the shoulders.  The eye-patch abandoned on the dresser without a second thought.

“You are ridiculously good looking.  How could you not be? You’re my son.”  Hackett chuckled when Indy glared at him.  “The scar doesn’t detract from your charms, monkey.  And if the t-shirt scrunched under your pillow is anything to go by, Declan hasn’t been run off either.”

“I obviously bewilder his senses with tantalizing cuisine.” Indy yanked his cravat off then ignored his father’s gaze while retying the scarf.  “I am coping admirably.”

Hackett squeezed Indy’s shoulder again. “You are brighter and stronger than any scar, monkey. It doesn’t change who you are any more than my scar changes who I am.”

“But you’re supposed to look rugged.” Indy wanted nothing more than to be in the kitchen, cooking and avoiding this conversation. “I thought you were here to eat.”

“I’m _here_ for you, monkey.” He used his hold to turn Indy around to face him. “I don’t like seeing you so focused on your physical appearance.  There’s more to you than how attractive you are.  And beyond all of that, the scar hasn’t diminished anything.”

“I know.”

“Do you? Really?”

“I’m not stubbornly obtuse.”

“Right. You are aware that you’re a Hackett, right?” He winked at Indy.

“I’m telling Dew you called yourself obtuse.”

* * *

 

_From: Miranda Lawson_

_To: Indiana Hackett_

_Subj: Project Assistance._

_Mr. Hackett,_

_My employer has watched your vid-documentaries with avid interest.  Your recent vid on Akuze was particularly intriguing—both the subject and quality._

_He would like to discuss the filming of a project at your earliest convenience.  Would you be available for a meeting within the next week?  We would travel to your location or perhaps a nearby coffee shop?_

_Sincerely_

_Miranda Lawson_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Style Reference: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/127646245846


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

 

The meeting with ‘Ms. Tight Pants’ from Cerberus had been oddly disturbing.  Indy had talked with Dew beforehand since his dad was out of contact for the week.  Dew had been uneasy about the whole Cerberus thing, but then again so had Indy.

The man had been so uneasy that he’d, unbeknownst to Indy, contacted Zaeeed to keep an eye on him.  He’d spotted the bounty hunter in the back booth of the restaurant.   Indy had selected the café because it was a  _very_  public place to hold a conversation with a somewhat shadowy organization.

For a supposed job interview, Miranda Lawson had spent the entire time questioning Indy about his visit to Akuze.   He found it too odd to ignore, so politely and delicately side-stepped all of her questions.  She made him too uncomfortable to trust her with anything not readily available on the extra-net already.

Not receiving answers to her questions, Lawson had quickly become frustrated with him.  She didn’t seem impressed by his tasting of various teas until he found the one he wanted to drink.  She  _certainly_  stormed out in a huff when he started to lecture about the delicate process of creating the pastry which had been served with his drink.

“Have you lost what’s left of your goddamn brain after getting a rocket to the head?” Zaeed dropped into the seat Miranda had vacated several minutes earlier.  “Who you meeting next then? Fucking batarians? A band of mercenaries? Rampaging krogans?”

“Don’t be crude, Zaeed.  It’s unnecessary and hurts my ears.” Indy sniffed in disdain before ignoring the man in favour of adjusting the collar of his deep-indigo, brocade coat.  “I’m astonished Dew trusted you enough for guard duty.”

“How ‘bout you answer my question?” Zaeed caught the server’s attention to order a beer for himself. “Well?”

Indy sipped his tea and dabbed his lips dry with a napkin before finally answering Zaeed.  “My next vid expose will be on Alliance officers who go rogue.  What better example than the many former marines who seem attracted to Cerberus?”

“Indy…”

“Ever since my injury, the Alliance has refused to offer me any further assignments.  I would never work for Cerberus, but their interest in me and Akuze is intriguing.” Indy waited for the server to leave the beer and wander off then continued. “My dad’s worried I’ll get hurt again.  I understand, but I’m not going to stop filming.”

“…get your stupid ass killed in the process.” Zaeed muttered to himself then took a long swig of beer.

“Could you at least attempt to enunciate?”

“No.”

* * *

 

_From: Steven Hackett_

_To: Andrew Merrick_

_Subj: re: Come Home._

_How on Earth could the monkey get into trouble already?  I’ve been gone five days.  He’s not generally prone to getting into trouble in the first place._

_Are you sure you aren’t exaggerating?_

_Steven_

* * *

 

_From: Andrew Merrick_

_To: Steven Hackett_

_Subj: re: Come Home._

_I have one word for you:_

_Andrew_

* * *

 

“Indy?” Declan dropped his go bag by the kitchen table and headed toward the soft grunting sounds coming from the living room.  “Hey? You oka….well fuck me.”

He watched in stunned amazement while Indy practiced fencing in nothing but a deep purple brocade corset and a matching pair of ruffled silk panties.  Declan found himself rapidly becoming painfully hard in his jeans.  He grinned at the gracefully moving younger man while making himself comfortable on a nearby chair.

“I thought you were to be away for months?” Indy paused with his foil held to the side. “I’d wondered about my father’s lack of response to Cerberus’s interest in me.”

“Yeah, yeah, words, orders, all that bullshit, keep moving.” Declan had more  _important_  things to do than get into a discussion about Admiral Hackett. “And feel free to bend over a few times so I can get a good look at your arse.”

“ _Honestly.”_

Declan gave him another grin and spread his legs wide, unzipped his trousers then pulled his cock out of his jeans.  “I’m being honest,  _very_  honest.”

Shaking with light laughter, Indy saluted him with the thin sword then began once again to practice his moves.  Declan slouched further into the seat and began slowly stroking his cock.  This was definitely a show he intended to appreciate fully—repeatedly if his young lover would humour him.

In an embarrassingly short amount of time, Declan had stroked himself to orgasm.  He leaned his head against the back of the chair attempting to catch his breath.   He almost bit through his tongue when a soft tongue licked across his overly sensitized shaft.

“ _Indiana.”_

“I am beyond overjoyed to have you home, let me show you how much.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Indy's Style Reference: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/128649084826/theacemerperson-sasha-overbust-corset-with (except purple)


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

The thing Hackett remembered the most from his son’s childhood was the happy sounds.  Indiana had been a cheerful baby from the very beginning.  His giggles were highly infections.  He’d not been a child prone to fits of temper or tantrums.

Now sifting through the charred remains of his son’s apartment, Hackett wanted to turn back the clock to Indy’s toddler years.  He could soothe way childhood hurts with a kiss and a read-through of Winnie the Pooh.  He was certain neither of those would be helpful now.

“Admiral?” Declan drew his attention away from the building.  “How is he? I haven’t had a chance to see him yet.”

“Frightened and annoyed that he’s frightened.  He’s also aggravated that I won’t set him loose with his vid-cam.”  Hackett forced his hand through his grimy, sweat and soot-coated hair. He needed a long hot shower to wash the dirt from his body and the panic which still lingered in his mind. “My son also appears bewildered by the attack.”

“He doesn’t understand the dangers of his own curiosity.” Declan avoided meeting Hackett’s gaze by kneeling to sift through a small pile of rubble.  “He’s naïve.  You’ve sheltered him in this idyllic, idealistic world and now he has no idea how to handle something as devious and subversive as Cerberus.  He can’t comprehend something which works so far outside of what is fair and just.”

“Major…”

“I’ll remove myself before you give in to the urge to kick my ass all the way to Arcturus.” Declan gave him a knowing grin then darted well out of reach.

“Arrogant son of a bitch.” Hackett kicked at the burnt door at his feet.  It was Indy’s front door which had been sent flying from the power of the blast.

Arrogant, but not wrong. 

Hackett had always worried about the rose-tinted glasses which Indy seemed to use to see the world around him.  The monkey had his _own_ perspective on people and their motivations.  And as a father, it had been hard to not correct some of his views. 

Had they done him a disservice?

When Indy had recovered so quickly from the debacle with Shepard, Hackett had hoped his son had learned a little about the world.  He seemed to be forever looking for the best in others.  Not a bad trait to have, but not always the safest.

“If you could keep an eye on this.” Hackett left Declan to oversee the marines while he went to check in on Indy.  He found his son sitting listlessly on a bench in the apartment gardens with a medic standing nearby.  He stepped over to the medic and kept his voice low. “How is he?”

“Uninjured, but in shock.”

Hackett waved the medic away and moved over to Indy.  “You okay, monkey?”

Indy picked at the frayed, singed edge of the scarf that had been tied around his neck as a cravat earlier.  He’d apparently used it to cover his mouth while he escaped the smoke-filled flat.  “My things, my vids, cameras, clothes—it’s all ruined beyond repair.  Why would anyone…I am beyond confused and disheartened.”

Sitting beside his son, Hackett wrapped his arm around his dropping shoulders.  Indy tensed briefly then twisted around to bury his face against his father’s shirt.  Hackett could feel the trembling in Indy’s body as he broke down into violent, angry sobs.

“It’ll be alright, Indiana.  I’ll fix it for you—me and Dew.” Hackett soothed his son while mentally making plans to eviscerate whoever had done this.  Cerberus and the Illusive Man were right at the top of his ‘put a bullet between their eyes’ list. “We can replace everything you lost.  You however are _not_ replaceable.”

“Why would someone do—this?” Indy sat up; dabbing is face with his scarf.  He fanned his eyes with his hand while sniffing repeatedly.  “Who would wish ill upon me? I’m…me.”

“Admiral? We found a bunch of these things in your son’s apartment.” One of the marines helping to clear the building held up a black corset only slightly damaged by the fire.  “Is there a missing woman we should be looking for?”

“Oh bother.” Indy sucked in a breathe so harsh that it sounded like it hurt. “Oh god.”

“I don’t believe it’s any of your damn business.  Does clearing a building usually involve snooping into the occupants closets and drawers to inspect the contents?” Hackett stood slowly, glowering at the lieutenant. He yanked the corset out of the marine’s hand. “Get back to your squad and focus on the mission. Is that clear?”

“Sir, yes sir.”

“Dad.” Indy covered his face with his hands with a low, embarrassed groan. “I have fallen into a pit of despair to never be seen from again.

Hackett waited until they were alone before crouching in front of his son. “You have _nothing_ to feel embarrassed or ashamed of.  Your personal preferences are none of their damn business. You’re brilliantly intelligent and I’m proud of you.”

“I have suddenly turned into a weepy toddler.” Indy sighed dramatically though he gave his dad a grateful, tentative smile.

“Why don’t we go find pie?”

“Because pie solves everything?”  Indy let his dad drag him up off the bench. “Did Cerberus do this because I refused their job and refused to give them the footage from my vid-cam?”

Hackett looped his arm around his son’s shoulders while leading him toward a nearby shuttle. Indy was more aware than Declan gave him credit for. “Possibly.”

“I don’t understand.”

“We’ll have pie and tea with Aidan and Andrew, and perhaps we can explain further.” Hackett had already decided before the explosion that they needed to explain the dangers of Cerberus to Indy.  He’d unfortunately been a week too late. “Then we’ll go shopping.”

“Shopping?”

“I’m assuming you’re going to want clothes which don’t smell like the charred remains of one of Dew’s cooking attempts.”

“I’m telling him you said that.”

“Bad monkey, bad.” Hackett glowered at his son then shoved him into the shuttle. He rested his hand on Indy’s shoulder. “I’ll make it okay, son. I promise.”

 

 


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

A despondent Indy tended to make everyone around him morose.  He’d holed up at his father’s apartment on Arcturus, ignoring everyone’s attempts to draw him out.  He hadn’t filmed anything in the week since the explosion.  His wardrobe had yet to be replaced.

The recovery efforts at his apartment had proved mostly futile.  Indy’s equipment, clothes and other belongings were for the most part all destroyed.  He’d managed to salvage less than a crate.   All of his hard work at university, all the things he’d collected over the years, everything that made him his fit in a small box.

Indy moved from being stretched out on the bed to hovering by the closed door while he eavesdropped on his dad and Dew muttering in the hallway.  The whispered conversation appeared to centre around who would try to talk into out of the room next.  They’d both tried several times already—failing dismally.

“Have we tried shopping?” Dew asked.

“Yes. I even offered to let him redo my entire wardrobe.” His dad sounded as if he were right in front of Indy’s door. “Monkey—why don’t you come out instead of listening at the door?”

Indy frowned at the door. “No.”

_“Indiana.”_

“Let me drown in my sorrow.” Indy moved back over to his bed to slump dramatically onto it on his back.  His arm covered his eyes while he studiously ignored the two men stepping into his room. “Away with you.”

“Sorry, monkey, but dads don’t let their sons ‘drown in their sorrows’, if they can help it.”  Hackett reached out to lift Indy’s arm away from his face.  “I bought clothes for you—pink and orange go together, right?”

“Please stop speaking.  Your inability to dress yourself might be contagious.” Indy laughed which was what his dad had clearly intended. “Pink and orange?”

“Dew’s idea.”

“Oi!” Dew popped his head into the room, glaring at Hackett. “I’ve got much better taste than that.”

“And yet you appear to be wearing clothing best suited for rags for cleaning.” Indy cringed at the state of the man’s jeans and t-shirt.  “Honestly, did you roll around in muck and mire?”

* * *

 

_From: Declan Coats_

_To: Aidan Coat_

_Subj: Indy._

_I’m stuck with my unit, hopping around the Terminus System trying to track down Cerberus.  We’ve got a lead on the bomb-maker.   I’m worried it’s just the tip of the iceberg._

_Massani’s proving to be useful.  He took the attack on Indy personally.   Bastard knows how to hold a grudge._

_Can you do me a favour and visit Indy on Arcturus?  I’m worried about him.  I know he has his dad, but maybe he needs someone not family to talk to might help him?_

_Declan_

* * *

 

No one wanted to tell Indy anything about what was happening with Cerberus.  He’d even attempted to sneak a look at the reports on his father’s desk.   Sneaking around _wasn’t_ one of his skills, Hackett had lead him _away_ from his office and attempted to distract his son with an impromptu shopping trip.

There was absolutely nothing more frustrating than attempting to shop with the admiral.  His dad had _no_ sense of style.  He kept trying to convince Indy to buy one outfit or another—all hideous, all dreadful and cringe-worthy.

“If I promise never to attempt unauthorized entry into your office, will this misery end?”  Indy begged when his dad dragged him into a second store.  “Is Dew aware of these sadistic tendencies you have?”

“ _Monkey.”_

“Why else would you be attempting to dress me? You haven’t done that since I was four.” Indy yanked a neon-green sweater out of his father’s hands. “Just _no_.”

“Okay, okay, I surrender.” Hackett stepped back with his hands raised in defeat. “Why didn’t you ask me about Cerberus? It’s not like you to attempt more underhanded methods.”

Turning away suddenly, Indy became very interested in an array of scarves.  He selected several which would make delightful cravats for him.  His dad waited patiently, readily accepting the handful of silken fabric Indy dropped across his arm.

“So I’ve been relegated to pack mule?”

Indy smothered a giggle against a dark green knitted sweater. “Hacketts are stubborn as mules.  It seems fitting.”

“Keep that up and I’m shaving your head in the middle of the night.”

“How could you even joke about such horrors?” Indy clutched the sweater to his chest and glared at his dad.  “I thought you would simply evade my questions.”

“When have I ever evaded your questions?”

“The time I asked you why Dew slept without clothes springs to mind.” Indy was struck with giggles again when the admiral’s face flushed. “You were rather skilled at evading.”

“You were four. “ His dad tossed a sock at Indy’s head. “Declan is making progress.  They’ve managed to grab a couple of Cerberus operatives and think it might grant them a way into the organization.”

“Aidan’s coming to visit.  He wants to help me find a new apartment.” He draped several sweaters, shirts and a new jacket across his dad’s arm. “I’ve been offered a position at ANN.  They want someone for their offices on the Citadel.  It would bring my work to a whole new audience.  I’d be working closely with the Fifth….you spoke to ANN.”

“Hmm?”

“Innocence does not become you.” Indy’s eyes narrowed on his father who whistled innocently.  The admiral strolled over to the counter to unload the clothes stacked on his arms. “ _Dad.”_

“The Fifth Fleet is under my command. I will be spending more time on the Citadel and in the systems around it.” Hackett held up several bowties for Indy to peruse.  He chuckled when Indy disregarded all three of them and went to make his own choices. “I was simply asked for my thoughts on whether you were up for the job.  They _approached_ me first, monkey.”

Indy started making his selection of trousers.  “Will Cerberus come after me again? Is the Citadel safer?”

“Perhaps.”

_“Dad.”_

Hackett scratched the stubble on his jaw for a moment before responding. “The Illusive Man has never been one to give up.  He fears you found information on their mission on Akuze.  They were clearly doing some sort of research there which involved a thresher maw and the Alliance marines.  I believe he will continue coming after you until he’s certain you _didn’t_ discover anything.”

And that was Indy’s greatest fear.  Cerberus would continue coming for him, not understanding that he _hadn’t_ found anything incriminating on Akuze.  The files found there had been discovered by the second unit the Alliance had sent after the explosion.  

The move to the Citadel would on the one hand provide Cerberus with easier access—potentially.  Indy thought working closely with the Fifth Fleet and the human embassy might just provide him with an extra layer of protection.   It would also give him an opportunity to explore stories on human interactions with other species.

“How many clothes does one man need?”

“Aidan?” Indy glanced over a rack of ties to find his boyfriend’s brother in his wheelchair by the door. “Thought you were coming tomorrow.”

“And miss you attempting to rebuild your lavish wardrobe? Not a chance.” Aidran smirked at him.

“I am beset on all sides by barbarians,” Indy sighed.

“Get the blue one.  Declan likes you in blue.” Aidan gestured to a truly awful frilly shirt.

“I am not speaking to either of you.”


	23. Chapter 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I feel I should preface this chapter by saying uber sad things happen within. Also TW: Death, though it's only mentioned not actually depicted, so no graphic violence or anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

With a muffled groan, Declan shut down his terminal and slouched into his chair with one hand covering his face.  Multiple messages from Indy’s family, friends and even from his own brother left him with sense of growing concern.  Something had to change and quickly.

He let his head fall back against the chair while contemplating the young man in question.  What they really needed was a vacation.  Indy needed something to take him away from all the bullshit going on in his life, somewhere safe where the two of them could relax

_And fuck._

_Lots of fucking._

The mission to track the Cerberus operatives down hadn’t been entirely successful. They’d lost the trail a few weeks ago.  It had ended with a dead agent and three injured marines, all their earlier progress appeared to vanish into thin air.

Despite Admiral Hackett’s attempts to keep a larger force focused on the mission.  The movement of geth forces through several systems had shifted the attention of the Alliance to what was felt to be a greater threat.  Declan and his unit were being reassigned to work with one of the ships in the Fifth Fleet.

But they did have one week of shore-leave first.  Declan started up his terminal again.  He had plans to make.

* * *

 

_From: Andrew_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: re: Indiana._

_Are we really going to fucking pretend that your son is the average son?_

_Where is Declan taking the monkey?_

_And why aren’t we taking a damn vacation?  I vote we visit an nudist colony, just the two of us._

_Andrew_

* * *

 

_From: Steven_

_To: Andrew_

_Subj: re: Indiana._

_They went to Eden Prime.  Indy wants to film a human colony.  He’s working on a new project involving Turian-Human cooperation._

_I’m hoping the two of them are gone before the Normandy arrives.  The last thing my son needs is to run into Shepard again._

_Steven_

* * *

 

“Where the hell is my son?” Hackett stormed out of the airlock onto the _Normandy_ , knocking Pressly off his feet. He caught sight of Anderson by the CIC and stalked toward him. “Where. Is. He?!”

“My quarters.” Anderson started to lead the way only for Hackett to rush by him.  “Steven.”

“ _What?”_ He spun around on the stairs to glare up at the captain.

“He doesn’t need a frantic father.” Anderson placed a hand on his shoulder. “He’s been through a traumatic…”

“Get the hell out of my way.” He wouldn’t be able to settle himself until he’d seen his son for himself. “David, please, I _need_ to see him.”

With a sigh, Anderson stepped aside after a few seconds.  Hackett froze inside the room.  Indy sat on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands, sobbing his heart out. 

Rolling his shoulders to relax himself, Hackett understood what his friend had been trying to get across to him.  His son was obviously devastated by the events on Eden Prime.  It would take _calm_ to help him through this.

“Monkey?” Hackett found himself stumbling back into the door when Indy shot off the bed and careened into his arms.  He cradled his son as best he could. “I’m sorry, Indiana, so sorry.”

“Declan…”

“I know, monkey.” Hackett guided Indy back over to the bed.  He sat beside him with his arm across his son’s shoulders. “Were you hurt?”

Hackett had been in a meeting with other Fifth Fleet captains when the report came in of a geth attack on Eden Prime.  He’d been on a cruiser bound for Utopia within minutes.  Anderson had kept him updated over the comm.

The bodies of Williams’ unit had been found along with Major Declan Coats.  He’d saved several colonists before being fatally wounded.  It had taken a while for them to find Indy who had been locked up in a trailer with a member of Coat’s unit—Lieutenant Osvaldo Martinez.

Indy had been inconsolable.  Anderson had finally left him to grieve alone until they could meet up with Hackett.  His son, for the first time in memory, couldn’t seem to put together coherent sentences.

“He abandoned me.”

“Indy…”

“Declan abandoned me in the midst of an attack by feral creatures.  He locked me in a barely standing structure with Ozzie.  Why wouldn’t he stay?” Indy pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and covered his eyes. “He _abandoned_ me.”

“Oh son.” Hackett brought his hand up to rest on Indy’s head. “He was being a marine.  He was trained for action.  Once he’d made sure you were secured safely with Martinez, he had to attempt to save the colonists.”

“And were the colonists saved?” His son’s voice held a bitter tone for the first time that Hackett could _ever_ recall. “Is this what marines train for? Rushing into the midst of chaos with no regard for those who cherish them?”

An officer with a vast amount of experience, Hackett had dealt with grieving families over the course of his career.  He’d never had to deal with his son like this.  Indy had lived a relatively charmed life.  It left him naïve and not necessarily equipped to handle something like this.

They sat in silence for the rest of the trip to the Citadel.  Hackett offered his son the comfort of simply being there for him.  He held him until the door to the captain’s quarters opened to reveal Andrew.

“Monkey?” Andrew moved swiftly over to crouch in front of him, placing his hand over Indy’s. “Why don’t we get your ass home?”

Letting Andrew handle bustling Indy off the ship, Hackett turned his attention to Lieutenant Martinez.  The young officer had kept a close eye on Indy on Eden Prime.  He’d also taken the loss of his commanding officer deeply.

“Lieutenant?”

  Martinez snapped to attention. “Admiral.”

“At ease.” Hackett waved off the salute. “Thank you for keeping my son safe.”

“Yes, sir.”

“And Martinez?”

“Sir?”

“Coats would be proud of you.” Hackett placed a comforting hand on the lieutenant’s shoulder.  He nodded to Martinez then headed back up to the CIC.  He paused by Anderson who was speaking to his XO. “David? Thank you.”

Anderson fell in step beside him while they made their way toward the airlock. “Keep an eye on Indiana.  He’s going to have a rough few weeks.  Shepard hoped to speak with him.”

“Not a chance in hell.” Hackett shook his head. “Indy has enough to deal with.  He doesn’t need Shepard screwing with his head right now.”

“Fine, fine.” Anderson held his hands up in surrender.  “I’ll be meeting with the ambassador.  I’ll keep you informed.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story WILL have a happy ending, I promise. Indy will have a happy ending.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

The quiet struck Hackett the most.  Indy generally filled a room with noise of some sort.  He was either spouting prose, cooking or watching vids.  His son brought everything to life quite vividly. 

And now?

Indy sat on the couch in his dad’s quarters, slumped into the cushions. He hadn’t eaten all day.  Nothing they offered seemed to tempt him.  He’d eaten before the memorial early the day before but not a bite since.

He held a pair of dogtags in his hand.  Aidan had given them to him at the service.  It had been a gift Declan would’ve wanted Indy to have.

“Never seen the monkey so still.” Andrew stepped up behind Hackett who’d been watching Indy form the kitchen.  He wrapped his arms around the admiral, pressing his face against the back of Hackett’s neck.  “What are we going to do?”

“I don’t know.” Hackett felt as if his monkey had swapped personalities overnight.  He wasn’t sure how to help him through it. “Massani’s coming to visit.”

“Shit.”

“He helped after the Shepard fiasco.  Maybe he’ll make a difference now?” He would walk through fire if it would help his son and dealing with Massani wouldn’t be all that difficult. “Make dinner?”

“Slave driver.” Andrew bit him lightly on the neck then pushed him toward the living room. “Talk to him.”

“I’ll try—again.”

His son made no acknowledgement of his presence when Hackett sat beside him.  Indy simple continued to stare at the tags in his hand.  He didn’t even look up when his dad called his name—repeatedly.

They couldn’t go on like this. 

“My heart aches.” Indy broke the silence without further prompting. “It burns. Oh how it burns.”

“I know, monkey.” Hackett had never been so utterly useless when it came to helping his son.  He’d always known the right words and now had nothing. 

“Here. Pie.” Andrew shoved a play with a slightly burnt pie and an overly runny filling into Indy’s hands. “I made it.”

“Obviously.” Indy wrinkled his nose in disgust.

“How is that helpful?” Hackett asked, barely holding in a laugh at Indy’s face.

“It’ll cheer him up.”

“ _He_ is sitting right in front of you.” Indy broke into their argument. “And _he_ is dismayed at your dismal attempt at patisserie.”

“Picky fucking monkey.”

“Declan is dead.” Indy stood, letting the plate fall to the floor.  “He will never return.  And you continue this charade of attempting to cheer me up.  It does nothing but remind me that he’s gone.  Leave me to wallow in peace. I will recovery when I’m ready.”

“Son…”

“No, enough.”

Hackett caught Indy when he tried to run from the room and crushed him into his arms. “It’ll be alright, monkey.”

“How?”

Hackett had no answer so he held his son tighter to him.  “Give it time.”

“And burnt pastry?”

“We’ll skip the pastry.” Hackett chuckled at Andrew’s indignant growl from behind them. “We’ll make ‘Dew’ eat his own pie.”

“How very perverse of you.” Indy gave his first smile in days, even if it was a slightly watery one. “He’s banned from my kitchen.”

“You ungrateful shits.”

He gave Indy another bone-crushing hug then drew back. “Hacketts pick themselves up.  You’ll be fine.”

* * *

 

_From: Zaeed Massani_

_To: Indy Hackett_

_Subj: Answer your goddamn messages._

_I’m done on Omega and heading to the Citadel._

_I expect a fucking pie when I get there so make me one._

_Zaeed_

* * *

 

Indy sobbed dramatically into the dough while he kneaded it.  He sniffled while preparing the various fillings.  By the time everything came out of the oven, he felt remarkably more like himself.

There still felt like a gaping hole had been blasted through his heart.  But Indy could finally breathe again.   It helped that his father and Dew weren’t hovering to offer pointless platitudes of how everything would be alright.

It wouldn’t.

Things would be different.  How could they not be different? Indy simply had to learn how to cope with this new form of life.

Zaeed grumpily ignoring the entire grieving process helped him immensely.  “Good fucking pie.”

“Must you eat with your mouth gaping so?” Indy grimaced at the sight.  He took a small bite of his own pastry. “Uncivilized...”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” Zaeed waved his fork at him, sending crumbs flying across the table. “You need to get your arse away from the Alliance for a bit.”

“Zaeed.” Indy didn’t want to think about his last attempt at a vacation.  “What about my work here on the Citadel? I’m supposed to be making a new vid-documentary.”

It seemed wise to leave out the part where Indy had given up on the subject.  He couldn’t bring himself to care about the Turian-Human cooperation.  He wanted to throw himself into food and have nothing at all to do with anything even loosely related to the Alliance.

Maybe Zaeed had a point.

 

 

 

 


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Four long months went by before Indy felt even close to his normal, fabulous self.  He’d been in a dismal fog for too long. Declan would’ve wanted him to bake, film and live, or so Aidan, Dew and his father kept telling him.   He thought it would eventually _feel_ like the truth.

There were still days where Indy sobbed in the bathtub.  A lot of chocolate was eaten, wine drunk.  He constantly worked to keep distracted from overpoweringly sad memories.

It helped—a little.

Indy had finally started working on his next vid-documentary. The one he’d been putting off since Declan’s death.   He was on the upper wards, near the Fifth Fleet’s offices when geth started appearing everywhere, sending him running for safety with the Alliance marines.

“Indiana?”

He skidded to a halt, stopping his run down the hallway at the familiar, heavily accented voice. “Martinez?”

“Ozzie, just Ozzie.”  Osvaldo Martinez grabbed him by the arm to drag him into a room.  He pressed Indy into a chair in the corner then turned his chocolate brown eyes toward the sealed door, weapon in hand. “I…”

An inhuman screech interrupted any further conversation. Ozzie shoved Indy from the chair onto the floor then knocked a desk over.  He whispered sternly for him to stay behind it.

With an overwhelmingly horrid sense of déjà vu, Indy found himself once again trapped in a room with creatures trying to get inside.  He half-expected Ozzie to rush out as Declan had.  Marines, in his opinion, tended to run headlong into things far too often.

How had life come to this?

A shotgun blast shocked him out of his thoughts of Eden Prime.  Indy risked a glance over to find Ozzie standing to the left side of the space where the door had been.  It had been blasted off completely.  He seemed to be conserving ammo, not shooting wildly.  He only took out targets which came close to them.

Indy thought about what his father or Dew might do in this situation.  He knew marines almost never operated alone.  With his vid-camera set up—might as well get something out of it—he decided to take a more proactive role in his own survivor.

After Eden Prime, Aidan had purchased a pistol for him.  They’d spent time at a range together.    Indy knew how the weapon worked, but had never used it on anyone. 

 _“Carajo!”_  Ozzie hissed when he spotted him. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Actively participating in the preservation of my prolonged existence.” Indy clutched tightly at the pistol in his hand. “I am open to suggestions.”

“Ease your grip on the gun.  Don’t point it at anything you aren’t ready to kill.” Ozzie gave him an assessing look followed by a blinding smile which had Indy thinking about something other than dying or husks.  The marine handed him a handful of omni-gel and set several packs of ammo at his feet. “Husks are mindless creatures.   Aim for the chest because it’s a broad target, but wait until they’re close enough to hit.”

Indy nodded tightly.

“Indiana?” He reached across the opening to grip Indy by the elbow firmly. “We’ll survive.  I won’t leave you here alone either.  You’ve got my back, right?”

The moment of comfort was broken by another husk attempt to attack.  Indy managed to catch it in the neck while Ozzie put a blast into its chest.  The miserable creature went down with a thud.  He stared down at it.

“How revolting.” Indy grimaced at the mess covering his shoes.  “Does life as a marine always devolve into spewing creatures?”

Ozzie’s lips twitched up into a smile. “Depends.”

Indy found himself blushing for _no_ reason whatsoever. He tried to narrow his eyes sternly like his father, but it didn’t have the right effect. “Could you perhaps retrieve your mind from the gutter?”

The entire station jolted moments later sending Indy stumbling into the man.   Ozzie wasn’t as tall or broad as Declan had been, but it still felt like crashing into a brick wall.  He found an arm going around his waist, spinning him around so he stood behind the marine.

“I…”

“ _Quiet_.” Ozzie’s snapped out a harsh whisper.  He eased them both back from the door, reversing until Indy found himself crushed between the wall and the marine. “Geth are _much_ harder to kill than husks.  I’m connected to the Alliance comms .  The Fifth Fleet is attacking the enemy ships.”

_Fifth fleet?_

The thought of his father being at the head of a battle had Indy sinking to the floor.  He shrunk into himself with his head buried in his hands.  Losing anyone else would shatter him completely.

They spent two tense hours cramped in the darkened corner of the room.  Indy had set his pistol down at his side after his hand began to hurt.  Ozzie had kept his post as a physical shield.   He ignored any protests about it.  Maybe all marines were obstinate by nature.

Then again, Zaeed would likely have been just as stubborn.  Imbeciles.  All of them.  Indy couldn’t comprehend why others always seemed so insistent on shielding him from things.  He wasn’t incapabple of handling himself.

He’d shot a husk, hadn’t he?

“He did it.”

Indy pulled himself away from staring at the man’s rather attractive ass. “Who has done what?”

“Shepard.  He stopped the attack.  It’s over.” Ozzie kept his gun out, but turned around to hold his hand out to help him to his feet. “Your father’s ship docked a few minutes ago.  They’re clearing the Citadel with C-sec and the spectres.  Let me get you to him.”

“Osvaldo.”

“ _Ozzie.”_

“Ozzie then,” Indy shrugged elegantly. “You have my thanks.”

He placed a hand on Indy’s shoulder. “I don’t know about you, but I’m tired of looking at husk guts.”

Indy felt a brief wave of nausea. “Was that _really_ necessary?”

“Yes.” Ozzie winked.

They made their way cautiously across the station.  Indy wouldn’t be completely at ease until he set eyes on his father.   He _hadn’t_ anticipated finding the man mid-conversation with the one person he didn’t want to see—Silus.

“Oh bludgeon me with a hammer.” Indy froze out of hearing range when he spotted them. “Could you perchance bash my skull in temporarily?”

“A bashed skull wouldn’t be temporary.” Ozzie followed his horrified gaze until he saw the two Alliance officers conversing. “Something wrong with Shepard?”

“Everything.”

Ozzie’s eyes narrowed for a moment. “An ex then?”

“My first.” Indy didn’t want to hash it all out again for anyone. “We haven’t laid eyes on each other in a long time.  I could do with it being forever.”

The marine’s brown eyes seemed to warm with sympathy.  He stepped in front of Indy to block him from view. “The admiral saw you.  They’ll be here in a second.”

“What gods have I offended?” Indy’s shoulders slumped dramatically.  He pasted a smile on his face when Hackett came around. “Dad!  I’m so pleased you’re all right.  I worried.”

“You worried?” Hackett dragged his son into a strong hug. “I had visions of you as a husk.”

Indy reared back from him with a glare. “Now how could you possibly imagine this vision of perfection as a husk?  Cruel, father, simply cruel.”

“Still an overly dramatic queen I see.” Silus looked tired, so much so Indy let the slight go by without responding.

Ozzie apparently didn’t find it necessary.  He gave a smile and salute to the Commander then punched him square in the jaw.  “Being a hero doesn’t give you license to be a douchebag as well, Shepard.”

“Didn’t you learn anything in those anger management courses?”  Silus got to his feet, rubbing his jaw.

“Of course, it taught me to have a really good reason before kicking someone’s ass.” Ozzie saluted Hackett. “Admiral.  I’ll leave your son in your hands.  You should be proud.  He took out several husks on his own.”

“Indy?”

Ozzie’s attention snapped back to Silus. “Looking to actually have a broken jaw?”

“Osvaldo.” Indy liked the way the man’s full name rolled off his tongue. “Silus isn’t worth it.  I am fairly confident he was always beneath my notice.”

“Commander? Perhaps you should get your arm seen to.” Hackett turned away from him to focus on his son. “I’m proud of you.”

“Because I used a weapon?”

He wrapped his arm around Indy’s shoulders. “I am _always_ proud of you.  But today, you stood up for yourself.  You kept yourself safe even though it was likely terrifying for you.”

Indy relaxed into his father’s arms. “I thought about Declan running into the fight on Eden Prime.”

Hackett tightened his hold on his son. “He wanted to keep you safe.”

“By leaving me?” Indy didn’t think he would ever understand it.

“Indy…”

Ozzie stepped forward, interrupting the admiral. “Declan always felt his place in a battle was on the front lines with his men.   Once he knew you had someone with you, he wouldn’t have stayed.  It wasn’t in him to do so.   He had to fight to save as many people as possible.”

“So Aidan said.” He thought maybe it was selfish to wish he’d chosen to stay behind. “He could’ve…”

“The Major would’ve resented you.  He would’ve survived and grown to feel you were at fault for the deaths of the marines.”  Ozzie spoke with such confidence it surprised Indy. “We were in boot camp together.  I’ve known him a long time.  His unit was always his first love.”

“You remained behind.”

Ozzie smiled when Hackett gave an amused snort. “As the admiral will no doubt inform you, I’ve never been very good at being a soldier.  I’d sacrifice the many to save one important life.  It makes me a terrible marine.  I prefer to let me own conscience rule my life—not the collective Alliance one.”

_“Lieutenant.”_

Ozzie gave yet another almost perfect salute to Indy’s father. “I’ll see myself out.”

Indy watched the man leave then jogged after him.  He caught up to him in a secluded hallway. “Osvaldo?”

“ _Ozzie.”_

Indy waved his hand impatiently at such an insignificant matter. “I am appreciative of your efforts on my behalf.”

“So you’ve said.”

He brushed his lips against the man’s cheek. “Thank you for _not_ leaving me.”

 


	26. Chapter 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope everyone has a happy holiday season! I am still open to holiday prompts as well. You can put them in comments or visit me on Tumblr and send me an ask.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

In the six months since the attack on the Citadel, Hackett had seen a change in his son.  The brooding, grief stricken Indy had slowly faded away until almost returning him to his normal eccentric self.  _Almost._   He had spent an abnormally large amount of time watching the vid from the day of the battle with the geth.

Why would he even want to watch it once?

Hackett would’ve thought it was traumatizing.  He wasn’t entirely certain Indy was watching it for a vid-documentary.  His son seemed a little _too_ focused on the lieutenant who had saved him. It made him uneasy.

The young lieutenant had a bit of a reputation for sticking his finger up at authority.  Osvaldo Martinez revelled in skirting around regs, never getting caught for it.  His career would never advance beyond commander as a result which the man seemed to find humorous.

As one of the admirals, Hackett didn’t find it nearly as amusing.  He appreciated Martinez for saving his son’s life.  But it didn’t mean he needed to become a fixture in it.

Progress had been made in Indy’s grieving process.  It had been obvious when his son started working on a vid-documentary again.  He’d also replaced his entire wardrobe—finally.  Hackett had never imagined a lack of shopping could’ve concerned him so much.

Yet, Indy had always placed a great deal of importance on his appearance.  His loss of interest had been particularly concerning.  Perhaps Martinez had just been the nudge back to life his son had needed.

_He hoped._

“Am I boring you?”

Hackett caught the hand inching up his thigh. “Thinking about Indiana.”

“No, you’re obsessing about his new friend.” Andrew gave him a knowing look.  He surged to his feet and over to the nearby bar to pour them both a drink. “Let it go, Steven.  The kid needs to move on.  Ozzie’s a good marine.”

“No, he’s not.”

“He’s not your type of marine.” Andrew corrected him before handing him a tumbler of scotch. “Look, Ozzie might not be my favourite person, but he’s better than Massani.”

“He’s Massani in uniform and better looking.” Hackett refused to see a silver lining where there was none.  “Damn it.”

“How’s he taking Silus dying?”  Andrew brought up the _other_ subject they’d be avoiding.  “He knows the _Normandy_ was destroyed right?  He didn’t run away to New York to avoid it, did he? Little fleeing monkey.”

“Better than I thought.” He’d worried his son would take the additionally blow of losing Silus badly, but the decline of their relationship seemed to have buffered him slightly. “Sad, but…not distraught.”

* * *

 

_From: Zaeed_

_To: Indy_

_Subj: re: Happy Holidays._

_Do I look like I celebrate the holidays?_

_You really are the oddest goddamn person I know._

_No, I won’t ‘shop’ with you.  Who the bloody hell do I look like? I’m on a bounty anyway._

_Zaeed_

* * *

 

Shopping alone tended to bore Indy to tears.  He preferred to leave menial labour like carrying bags to others.   His father and Dew had refused to go with him this time.  Not necessarily a bad thing since it would be difficult to buy their presents if they went with him.

And alone in New York City.

His purchases could’ve been gotten on the Citadel or even on Arcturus.  After the destruction of the _Normandy_ , Indy needed space from familiar faces.  Everyone had been _so_ concerned about how he would handle the death of Silus.

Truthfully?  Indy hadn’t put much thought into it.  He was sad if only for the pointless loss of life of all the marines who died on the ship.  Silus hadn’t been his favourite person for a long while. 

Indy had barely made it into the first boutique before an arm was slung across his shoulders. “Unhand me.”

“Why? You might like my hands on you.” Ozzie waltzed forward into the store with Indy stumbling along beside him.  “What are we doing?”

“I am perusing items to obtain for the upcoming holiday festivities.” He stared pointedly until the arm on his shoulders moved away. “If you choose to traverse through the city with me, you _will_ be assisting me with my purchases—the carrying, not the buying.”

“Fancy way of saying lug my shit around.” Ozzie’s eyes widened when he realized what exactly Indy was _perusing._ “Am I stepping on some bird’s toes?”

Indy blinked at him several times in confusion before realizing why his holding the leather and lace corset might cause misunderstanding.  He made a decision to _not_ hide who he was for fear of rejection. “It’s for me.”

“For you?” He cleared his throat. “For you to wear?”

“Yes.”

Ozzie’s deep brown eyes darkened to almost midnight black.  His grin had a wickedly dangerous edge to it. “Maybe you should try it on in the changing room first? Make sure it fits.  Model it for me.”

“I…” He watched with slightly shaky nerves as the marine caressed the soft leather corset which he held in his hands. “I am _not_ a free show.”

Ozzie moved over to lift up a burgundy brocade corset. “Try this one.”

_Well, what fascinating turn of events._

The bag carriers didn’t generally make suggestions, not in a store like this.  His father on the rare occasions that he dared shop with Indy tended to keep his eyes firmly _away_ from anything resembling lingerie.  Declan had enjoyed him in the garment, but not the purchasing of them.

Thoughts of Declan no longer drove him to despair.  Indy had twinges of sadness.  But it seemed time _had_ helped him work through his grief.  Aidan had insisted his brother would’ve wanted him to move on—to be happy.

He plucked up the item Ozzie had pointed out to him. “It will take more than a twinkle in your eye for me to display myself, Osvaldo.”

“Good.”

“Good?”

“I’m a marine, Indy.  I like a challenge.”

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leather Corset: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/135274200186/nuclear-princess-leather-and-lace-corset
> 
> Burgundy Corset: http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/135320297691


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

After the glorious rush of the holidays, Indy took a break to visit Paris, Cannes, Burgundy and Provence.  It had been planned out a while back as a Christmas present from his dad and Dew.  They’d even booked several cooking lessons with various renowned chefs in Paris and Provence particularly.  For the first time in ages, he truly revelled in his adoration of fine cuisine.

As a way to keep his father (and Dew and Ozzie and Zaeed) updated on his travels, Indy had begun a series of vid-diaries on the extra-net.   He never expected them to gain a following.  By the end of the three months in France, he had thousands of people avidly watching.

The sudden celebrity of it all took Indy by surprise.  It also provided him with an interesting avenue to pursue with filming.  He had never been in front of the camera quite this much.  It intrigued him.

The geth attack had all but ruined the Citadel for Indy.  Arcturus had also lost its shine for him.  After several long talks with his dad, he finally decided to move permanently to Aix-en-Provence.

 When a flat not far from the patisserie whose kitchen Indy would be using came available, it fit his needs perfectly.  The three bedroom apartment had enough room for him to have not only a guest bedroom but a full time room dedicate to his filming.

Ozzie, Zaeed and several of his new chef friends helped him paint and move into his new home.  His dad planned to visit in a week—after Ozzie left.  The two seemed to rub each other the wrong way constantly.   Dew found it hilarious, Indy not so much.

Once settled in his new apartment, Indy started up an _official_ vid series—The Decadent Pâtisserie Connoisseur.   He made mostly little bites of food—sweet things.  He developed even more fans over the next few months. 

The vid-camera hovered over the kitchen while Indy prepared a mini apple cake.  Zaeed had a bounty to track down in Marseille so he’d promised to stop by for lunch.  The man had ‘news’ for him.  It didn’t sound like anything good.

For the last four weeks, Zaeed had been—quiet.  His father and Anderson had been equally absent.  The silence seemed so unlike all of them.

Indy returned to thinly slicing apples, ready to lay them out on top of the cake.  “What _are_ you all attempting to obfuscate from me?”

Sadly, his cake had no insight to offer to him about all the befuddling figures in his life.  Indy had only seen his father avoid him like this once before.  It had involved rather dreadful news indeed.

* * *

 

_From:  Lt. Osvaldo Martinez_

_To: Adm. Steven Hackett_

_Subj: re: Undercover Op Orders._

_Admiral,_

_With all unnecessary and unearned respect—no._

_Admiral Mikhailovich promised I would no longer be worked undercover operations.  I’m not suited toward it.  I wasn’t specifically trained for it._

_You don’t like me around your son—fair enough.  Not your decision to make though, is it?  It seems unlike you to screw around like this.  Don’t you and Indy usually talk about everything?_

_So no, I will not be going undercover to investigate Cerberus.  They wouldn’t hire someone like me.  And there are other marines better situated to fit into a roll like this._

_Put more plainly._

_Eat my dick. I’m not fucking doing it._

_Martinez_

* * *

 

“You actually told my father to eat your dick.” Indy stared blankly at Ozzie with a spoon in his hand, oblivious to the batter dripping onto the floor.  The lieutenant had crashed his dinner with Zaeed—who apparently found this all highly amusing. “To _eat_ your dick.”

“I’ve decided to work in the private sector,” Ozzie shrugged indifferently.

“What the idiotic bastard means is he went and got himself chucked out of the Alliance.” Zaeed clarified around his mouthful of pastry.

“And you—what is this dreadful secret you’ve been hiding from me?” Indy refused to acknowledge bad behaviour so he would focus on Zaeed instead. His brow furrowed in confusion when his friend handed him a datapad. He quickly skimmed through it. “ _Cerberus.”_

The dossier in the files included an invitation to join an upcoming Cerberus mission headed by an as yet unnamed individual.  Details were apparently to come later.  They offered an obscene number of credits along with information on Vido Santiago’s location.  It was something guaranteed to obtain Zaeed’s attention and acceptance.

_An offer he couldn’t refuse._

“Have you said yes?” Indy set the datapad down with exaggerated care and returned his attention to the simmer pot of sugar for his caramel sauce. “You have hunted Santiago for many years.”

“Indy…”

Zaeed held a hand up to silence Ozzie. “Cerberus still has a bone to pick with you.  I want to fucking know why.”

He truly had no earthly idea how to respond.  “The credits and information are a bonus?”

“Better than not getting bloody paid for working my arse off.” Zaeed shoved an empty plate across the table. “Got another one of those flaky ones?”

“The Gougère?”

“Yeah, the flaky shit.”

Indy gave an indignant sigh, but placed several of the cheese filled puffs on the plate for him. “Must you be so…”

“Yes, shut it and feed me.”

Indy raised an eyebrow at the command then glanced over at Ozzie. “Osvaldo is all about offering his parts for consumption.  Why not ask him?”

“Not if my goddamn life depended on it.” Zaeed looked the former Alliance officer over from head to toe.   He turned toward Indy. “Maybe with you in the middle though…might not be too bad.”

The only sound in the room for a brief moment was that of the sugar telling Indy that his caramel had been allowed to cook for too long.  He had _no_ response for Zaeed’s joke.  It had to be a joke.  Ozzie—unsurprisingly—did have a response.

Ozzie leaned across the table until his nose almost touched the bounty hunter’s. “Think your heart could handle it?”

“I _am_ not an it. And I am certainly _not_ on the table to be offered to whoever asks.” Indy smacked Ozzie on the back of the head with one of his spoons. “You’ve both distracted me from my caramel.  So you can either leave or sit in silence while I correct the mistake.”

He _wasn’t_ an it.

And he _wasn’t_ interested.

Was he?

_No._

* * *

 

_From: Steven Hackett_

_To: Andrew Merrick_

_Subj: Don’t say it._

_I could’ve handled the Martinez situation better._

_I could’ve handled the Shepard not being dead better._

_In any case, over Indy’s latest food endeavours, we had a very long  conversation about all of it.  He’s still upset with me over trying to ‘evict Osvaldo out of your son’s life without any consideration for your son’s feelings on matters.’  The monkey could never stay angry for long. _

_We discussed Shepard and Cerberus.  He seemed to handle it well.  He already has an inside into the ship through Massani of all people.  Why the hell would the Illusive Man want someone like him?  He’s capable, of course, but not trustworthy._

_You should come visit, my son sent me home with a box of pastry._

_Steven_

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Food Reference:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/136849084076/foodiepalooza-goug%C3%A8re  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/136849355116/intensefoodcravings-mini-french-apple-cake


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Indiana Hackett.

Vid-sensation.

His cooking vids had garnered a massive amount of attention. The éclairs from last week’s episode had been viewed over a million times.  Requests for inter-species recipes had even begun to arrive.  People occasionally sent him ingredients to work with.

Zaeed had convinced Wrex to send pyjack meat and ryncol.  Indy had _not_ been amused.  Ozzie had laughed himself hoarse.

Aside from his food endeavours, it had been a quiet year for him personally.  His father had been busy with Alliance projects.  The threats from the Collectors had been attacking more and more colonists. 

Things with Ozzie hadn’t panned out like he thought.  Indy had discovered they worked much _much_ better as friends.  Their three dates had been utter disasters practically from start to finish.

Embarrassing. Disasters.

For the past few months, Indy had been following the ANN reports on the suddenly reappeared Commander Shepard.  Silus had been dealing with the threat to the colonies.  He had the strangest sense of impending doom about it all even though his dad kept telling him not to worry about it just yet.

‘Yet.’

When exactly was he supposed to _start_ worrying?

It was only a few months later while Indy was slicing up pears for a tart for his dad’s visit when the building shook.  He quickly shut off the stove and oven.  He tossed the ingredients into the trash before racing through to his bedroom.

Ever since Silus’s feigned arrest and return to Earth, his dad and Dew and insisted Indy keep a set of armour and weapons at the ready.  They’d planned on picking him up today, something about him being safer on an Alliance ship with them.  Ozzie and Zaeed had brought him a rifle—and a shuttle which they’d refused to tell him how they’d obtained it.

Ozzie and Zaeed.

Those two _had_ discovered they worked better as more than friends.  Indy had found it amusing. The attempts by his dad to set him up on blind dates with someone _suitable_ were not amusing.

Suiting up in the armour, Indy risked a glance out the window.  His jaw dropped at the massive ships—creatures—whatever they were.  Red beams shot out from them incinerating everything.  Not a good sign, definitely not a good sign.

 _I bid you adieu._   Indy glanced around his home mournfully.  He had no idea if it would be standing at the end of the war, or if he would even be alive to care.  _Courage, Indiana.  Hackett’s always survive._

With his pep talk complete, Indy decided to try to get to the shuttle.  Ozzie had spent weeks teaching him how to pilot the thing under duress.  They’d known the invasion might happen when no one was near him.

_I am capable._

Once in the shuttle, Indy attempted to contact his dad, Dew, Ozzie, Aidan and Zaeed with no luck.  His hand trembled while he tried to get the Kodiak started.  Not even Akuze or Eden Prime had terrified him so much.

It took longer than it should to get his shaking under control.  Flying a Kodiak with violently trembling hands would’ve been a terrible idea.  Indy knew his odds of survival weren’t all that brilliant without making it harder on himself.

As the comms still appeared to be down, Indy had to make a tough decision on where to go.   The last time he had actually spoken with any of his loved ones in the Alliance, they had all been gathered in Vancouver dealing with Silus.   His shuttle had sufficient fuel to easily make the journey there.

_If the reapers don’t incinerate me out of the sky._

Aidan had told him repeatedly to avoid larger cities if caught out during a war.  They’d be the places first attacked.  His odds of staying alive would increase greatly if Indy could manage to sneak through the countryside.

* * *

 

_From: Andrew_

_To: Steven_

_Subj: re: Indiana._

_No word._

_I finally reached a few surviving marines from the base in Paris.  They risked a trip out to Indy’s.  He’s not there, neither is the shuttle.  I have no idea where the fuck he’s gone.  I’m hoping against hope that he’s headed to Vancouver since that’s where we were last._

_David and I will keep an eye out for him._

_Has he tried reaching you?_

_Comms are still fucking spotty so maybe he’ll keep trying to get through?_

_Stay alive._

_Andrew_

* * *

 

The shuttle might’ve had enough fuel to make it to Vancouver, but Indy only made it across the ocean.  He took a hit from one of the reaper creatures and limped to the first military base on the map—Goose Bay.   He crash landed outside one of the hangars and stumbled out to face a sea of rifles.

Indy slowly raised his hands into the air. “Hello.”

“Indy?” One of the marines lowered his weapon and stepped forward. “Indiana Hackett?”

He blinked at the man trying to place him.  He finally remembered him as one of the instructors who had worked with Dew at the Villa. “Major Reginald Carter?”

“Reggie.  It’s Admiral now.” He elbowed one of his fellow soldiers when she snickered. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Indy lowered his arms, wondering if he should’ve brought his helmet with him. “Trying to reach Vancouver to see if my father is still there.”

“He’s not.” Reggie waved the marines away and moved closer to take him by the arm to guide him into the hangar. “Vancouver was decimated.  The fleets retreated when they realized it was pointless.”

“And my father?

“Fifth fleet made it out safely.” Reggie avoided a direct answer skilfully—typical officer. “I assume from the damage to the shuttle you had a less than friendly welcome to this side of the ocean.  Were you hurt?  Do you need a medic?”

“I remain uninjured.” Indy decided not to mention he could go for a glass of brandy and the rest of the soufflé currently sitting at home on the counter. “Are we safe here?”

Reggie brought his hand up to rest on Indy’s shoulder. “Nothing’s safe anymore.  Not until the fleets return, maybe not even then.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you have a tendency towards dismal and depressing?” Indy held hope in his heart that his father would come back. “I never knew what a pessimist you were.”

“I’m a marine.  Optimism gets knocked out of you in boot camp.”

“How tragic.” Indy sniffed at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reggie: https://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/143494257061


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Despite the attempts of his family to teach him how to handle weapons, Indy quickly came to the conclusion that he was more in the way than anything else.  It seemed wisest to leave the fighting to the professionals.  Why waste ammo? 

The only confidence Indy had about fighting came from fencing.  How many bastardized creatures could he realistically skewer with his foil?  Not enough, definitely not enough to make an actual difference, so the battles would be left for professionals.

Giving the need for rationing food supplies, Indy couldn’t even offer assistance there.  The meals all came already prepared.  He couldn’t really make them taste any better without a shop full of ingredients to help.

_Why am I even here?_

He could contribute nothing, had contributed nothing.

“You’re thinking too hard.”

Indy stopped folding the fourth load of laundry that he’d done to find Reggie watching him. “One can _never_ think too hard, particularly when involved in such plebeian pursuits.”

Reggie shook his head with a chuckle. “Plebeian?”

Indy held up a pair of grey boxers. “Cotton. I mean honestly, cotton? I know the Alliance tends towards credit-pinching, but _cotton_?”

“Indiana.” Reggie pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned. “There are bigger issues than my shorts.”

“Sacrilege.” Indy exclaimed before glancing at them with interest. “Are they yours?”

Reggie glanced up at the ceiling for a moment. “What about yours?”

Indy smiled coyly at the older man. “Mine are neither cotton, nor simple, and certainly not cheap.”

* * *

 

_From:  Dad_

_To: Indy_

_Subj: re: Dew._

_Andrew is leading a group of his former N7 trainees.  He’s fine—healthy and happy to have something to shoot at._

_Stay safe, son.  Stay close to Reggie.  He’s a good man and I know he’ll keep an eye on you._

_I love you._

_Dad_

* * *

 

Indy had never seen desperation like on the faces of the survivors which continued to find their way to the base.  They stumbled into the relatively safe place, shell-shocked and in many cases injured.  He heard horror stories from some who had to kill their own loved ones to keep them from being turned into monsters.

How could he help them?  Indy’s work with injured veterans had done nothing to adequately prepare him for it.  His experience on Eden Prime seemed almost like a holiday by comparison.  As a result, sleep evaded him almost completely.

Would it ever end?

The secure location at the military air base eventually drew the attention of the reapers.  In the rush to escape, they lost a number of marines and civilians.  Indy had been dragged into a shuttle to escape at the last minute by the admiral.

Along with six marines and several civilians, they fled across the Atlantic to London.  Pockets of soldiers had been funnelling from all across the planet to join up with Admiral Anderson had his growing army.  They had begun to cobble together several vases of operation within the city.

It struck Indy while glancing around at the determination on the faces of the marines that this might be the start of humanity’s last stand.  He might be prone to exaggeration, but it did feel rather drastic.  Hope didn’t seem on their side, not unless Silas could work miracles with the other species.  His dad might be the greatest admiral in the Alliance, but even he couldn’t do much without a large enough fleet. 

“Indiana!”

Indy found himself pulled away from Reggie and into a back breaking hug from Anderson. “It’s a joy to see you as well, though I’d prefer to keep my ribs intact.”

“Right.” Anderson stepped away and rolled his eyes at the younger man.  “Your dad’s waiting to talk to you.  Go put him out of his misery.  He’s been worried.”

With a quick word of thanks to Reggie for keeping him safe, Indy left the two admirals to converse and followed a young lieutenant over to the communications terminal set up in a partially demolished building.  He fidgeted nervously in front of the terminal, waiting for the image of his father to appear.  His knees went week when the familiar figure showed up.

“Dad.” Indy almost lost control of his emotions.  He dug his fingernails into the palm of his hands to try to stop the threat of tears, not wanting to worry his father even more than he likely was. “Are you well? You look tired.”

“Indiana.” His dad stayed silent for a while just watching him. “I understand it was a bit of a rough ride at the beginning.  Were you hurt?”

To his utter embarrassment, Indy couldn’t verbalize an answer.  He stared at his father until his vision became completely obscured by tears.  A hand gripped his shoulder to offer comfort and he turned to find Reggie standing behind him.

“Reginald.”

“Steven.”

Indy swallowed his tears along with the absurd urge to giggle at the sudden glare on his father’s face. “I am the picture of perfection, dad.  Not a single new scar to mar my flawlessness.”

“We’ll be heading to Earth in a few days.  Don’t take any risks, Indiana.  You hear me?” Hackett had apparently decided to ignore whatever had bothered him about Admiral Carter. “Keep him out of trouble, Reginald.”

“Will do.”

“I love you.” Indy’s sense of dread increased the moment the image of his father flickered out of existence. “May God help all of us.”

“Feel better now?”

Indy twisted around to pin the man with a Hackett stare. “Is there a reason you were measuring the size of your testicles against my father’s?”

Reggie seemed to struggle with the urge to roar with laughter.  He managed to contain himself and moved his hand from Indy’s shoulder up to muss up his hair. “Don’t worry your pretty head about it. You’ll figure it out eventually.”

“My _pretty_ head?”

“Well, it is. Good hair, must run in the family.”

“You are the _oddest_ admiral that I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.” Indy frowned at the man while he went about fixing his messed up hair. “You are unnaturally mischievous for an old officer.”

 The grin on the man’s face didn’t make him feel better.  Indy had the distinct feeling he was being flirted with.  Admiral Reginald Carter was flirting with him.

_How unusually odd._

The awkward teenager in his heart jumped for joy at the idea that one of his first crushes might actually consider it.  Indy watched Reggie out of the corner of his eye while they made their way across the base.  He noticed they were close enough for their arms to brush together.

_Fascinating._

“Is it the apocalypse syndrome?”

“What?” Reggie sidestepped a group of marines who were congregated by a shuttle.  He caught Indy by the elbow to guide him around them. “Apocalypse syndrome?”

“The phenomenon of people facing their mortality and decided to act on all those things they’ve denied themselves.”  Indy allowed his eyes to drift up and down the man. “I definitely approve.”

“Your father won’t.”

Indy heaved a dramatic sigh and waved his hand in dismissal. “I believe in the end my father will find you to be a step up from my last romantic fling.”

_Maybe._

 

 

 

 

 


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bioware owns all sadly.
> 
> Kudos, Subscriptions and Bookmarks are a drug that I love to receive. Comments are chocolate, they make everything better. I am thankful for all of them.
> 
> Shout out to my spectacular betas: CelticGrace & MissMeggo929
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Imagining himself sitting on the patio of a chateau enjoying wine with Reggie kept Indy from completely descending into panic.   The Alliance appeared to be losing.  No one wanted to admit it, but it was true nonetheless.

Despite his lack of skills, Indy had been conscripted into helping the injured at the forward operating base.  He had a feeling it was more about keeping him safely out of the way than his non-existent abilities at playing medic.  He did his best to apply medi-gel and comfort the injured for all the good it seemed to do.

Contact with the fleets had fizzled to nothing.  Indy had begun to resign himself to the worst.  The few things they did hear over the comms from the ground units didn’t sound good at all.

And then it all went massively bright overhead.

“I am far too pretty and young to die.” Indy shot to his feet and raced out of the room to get a look at the sky overhead.  He could see reaper ships falling in the distance. “How marvellously miraculous.”

“Comms are down.”

Indy glanced over his shoulder when he overheard the shout from one of the marines who’d been tasked with trying to reach Admiral Anderson.  “Down?”

“All of them, even the channel we had working a minute ago.”

Jogging across a battered wall, Indy clambered over a makeshift barrier before stumbling down the stairs to finally make it to where officers who’d stayed behind at the base had congregated.  He found them in the midst of a panicked planning session.  It appeared no one knew where the reapers had been defeated and if so, had anyone outside of earth survived?

With nothing better to do with his time, Indy decided to fall back on one of his actual talents.  He pulled up the vid camera on his omni-tool to see if it was still working.  It was time to document the aftermath of war.

Someone should remember.

One of the themes from his earlier documentaries with veterans had been how quickly people tended to forget the cost of war.  If Indy had lost his entire family in one massive explosion, he had no intentions of allowing their sacrifice to be forgotten.  He would capture everything on vid to hopefully one day cobble together into something shareable.

It kept him occupied.

Kept his mind occupied.

For the next ten hours, Indy wandered the debris fields of London.  He spoke with injured marines and civilians.  He worked tireless since the concern over his father and Dew had completely eroded his appetite away to nothing.

There were so many amazing stories of survival—of almost dying.  People wanted to get the words out.  Indy offered them a willing ear to listen.  It strangely made him feel less alone—less adrift in the darning o their post war world.

The danger had ended with all the reaper creatures being defeated.  It left an oddly quiet and dusty hole in its wake.  No one seemed to have any idea what to do with themselves.

Marines walked around as if on autopilot.  Indy had heard Aidan talk frequently about shellshock.  He had never expected to see and experience it for himself.

As communications finally came online, Indy began to hear from those he cared about the most.  Ozzie and Zaeed had ended up on the other side of the city. They were now headed to the Citadel to check on survivors there.

Looking for friends.

They hadn’t wanted to leave him alone.  Indy had done the brave them and set them off.  The danger was over after all. 

The truth beneath the unusual show of bravado was Indy didn’t want anyone seeing him fall apart. The longer the wait to hear from his father or Dew, the more hope seemed to have abandoned him.  Aidan had always told him war equalled loss in the end.

In his heart, Indy thought perhaps loss wasn’t finished with him.  He had hoped losing his mother and Declan had been enough.  He still needed his dad.

_Desperately needed him._

“Indy?” Reggie found him sitting on the remains of a shuttle. “You should rest _and_ eat.  I know the MREs aren’t the greatest, but I don’t want to deal with a hacked off Hackett over your refusing to eat.”

“Hacked off Hackett?” Indy found his lips forming a smile without his strict permission.  “How long have you been waiting to use that?”

“Years.” Reggie joined him on the burned out Kodiak.  He held out a protein bar usually reserved for biotics. “Your father doesn’t have your sense of humour.”

Indy grimaced in distaste at the bar after the first bite. “Oh this is almost worse than starvation.  Whoever created this monstrosity should be drawn and quartered.”

“Drawn and quartered?” Reggie offered him a bottle of water to chase it down. “How are you holding up?”

“I am on the brink of vid-documentary brilliance.” Indy didn’t want to delve into his emotional state.  “What will happen now? The war has come to a close yet all I can see is utter destruction.”

“We rebuild.” Reggie tapped his finger against the wrapper of the protein bar. “Finish it.”

“I would rather chew on the hide of a varren.” He didn’t think he could get through another mouthful. “Shouldn’t you be organizing the troops?”

“Do they look unorganized?”

“Admiral Carter.”

They both turned to find one of the junior officers racing toward them.  She jumped over some of the debris to get to them.  Reggie took the datapad she handed to him in a rush of urgency.

“We made contact.”

Indy didn’t dare hope and even found it almost impossible to look at either of the marines. “Contact with whom?”

“Indy.”

He couldn’t—wouldn’t look up. “Yes?”

Reggie waved the young woman away and waited before returning to his seat by Indy. “It seems Admiral Hackett is wondering where his son is.”

“He’s alive.” Indy crumbled the protein bar in his hands. “And Dew?”

“Also alive—the annoying ass.”

It started as a laugh that morphed into a sob.  Indy’s shoulders shook violently with the relief of his worst fears evaporating before his eyes. They were _both_ alive.

_Oh, how every mortifying._

Hacketts didn’t sob in front of their crushes—in front of anyone.  Indy struggled to pull himself together.  Reggie simply sat in silence, wrapping an arm gently around his shoulders for comfort.

By the time shuttles began landing in the area, Indy had learned both Silus and Anderson had died on the Citadel.  They had sacrificed themselves to end the war.  He had a feeling they weren’t the only ones.

“Indiana?”

Indy rushed away from the marine he’d been interviewing and went straight into the arms of his father. “I worried so much you would meet your demise in the stars.”

“Andrew claims we’re too stubborn to die.” Hackett crushed his son to him in a tight embrace. “It’s hard to be the man in charge when your son is out of reach.  I worried every single moment that I’d never hold you again.”

“I love you.” Indy hid his face against his father’s uniform.  He felt the arms around him tense. “Dad?”

“Admiral Carter.”

_Oh._

“Admiral Hackett.” Reggie infused a healthy amount of amusement into the words. “Good work with the fleets.  I managed to keep all Indy’s pieces together.”

“And what were you _doing_ with his pieces?” Andrew stepped up to them, reaching out to yank Indy out of his father’s arms into a massive bear hug. “I thought you knew better.”

“Must you humiliate me?” Indy struggled to get out of the muscled arms holding him.  He straightened his clothing and ran his fingers through his hair. “I am most pleased to see you all alive and well.  Perhaps embarrassing innuendo can wait until we aren’t surrounded by the remnants of what could have been the apocalypse?”

Hackett narrowed his eyes on Reggie, but after a moment he surprised his son by holding his hand out. “Thanks for keeping him alive.”

“Could you not talk about me as if I’m invisible?” Indy rolled his eyes at them. He turned a bright smile on Reggie. “Thank you for not fobbing me off on someone else.”

“Can we get back to the pieces he’s touched?” Dew gave him a mischievous grin.

“Why am I pleased to see you again?” Indy resisted the urge to kick the man in the shins.  He merely turned away from Dew toward his father. “What now?”

“Now?” Hackett followed his son across the rubble. “Now we start over—we do better than we did before.”

Better took a long time to come to fruition.  Indy spent eight months working in London and other cities.  He followed along with groups of search and rescue teams, filming everything. 

Admiral Carter had been placed in charge of finding survivors and recovering bodies.  It put the two of them together quite often.  It was on the ninth month after the war when Indy had returned to Paris that they had a first date.

He didn’t tell his father until the fifth date.  The conversation went better than expected.  He had chosen to wait until he knew the man was exhausted from his efforts of rebuilding.

Dew _didn’t_ handle it so well.  He seemed bothered by the idea of Indy dating a man who had known him as a youth.  It wasn’t until their tenth date that he finally came around.

Indy had no idea what the long term future held for him.  He had the new vid-documentary to edit and share.  He wanted to eventually return to cooking.

And he wanted Reggie in his life.

And after the hell of the last year—the future truly looked bright.

**Author's Note:**

> Indy's Face reference:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/115135040426/indiana-indy-hackett
> 
> Andrew Face Reference:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/115901452816/dailydoseofdilf-tom-may-dilf
> 
> Ozzie:  
> http://pixelatrix.tumblr.com/post/131519701881/lovingmalemodels-rodiney-santiago


End file.
